Offense & Defense
by Alejandro Gonzalez
Summary: On that day, humanity received a grim reminder, and a young boy realized he was not human. From where have these powers come? What do they mean? If he isn't of this Earth, where is he from? His quest begins where a wall fails, and will take him on a stranger journey than even the Titans.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

Armin felt the thud as the bullies slammed him into the wall. His ears rang and he looked in contempt at those poised to hurt him. His weakness had brought another beating, more examples of him not being able to defend himself. A fist hovered, poised to hit him once again. He only gritted his teeth and readied himself for more pain.

"Stop!"

A familiar voice, Eren, drew their attention away from him. He shifted to the side as he ran, revealing Mikasa running just behind. At once the bullies took notice.

"Oh crap! It's Mikasa! Run!" one shouted, leading the other two on as he dashed with all his might.

Armin rubbed his aching neck. "Thanks, guys," he said. "I appreciate it."

"No problem, Armin, you can't let bullies treat you like that," Mikasa added.

Armin shook his disheveled blond hair out of his face. "No, I'm just not strong like you guys," he argued.

"Don't say that, Armin, you're just fine," Mikasa said.

As they walked on, Eren looked at the troops in the distance and shook his head. "I can't believe they just want to get drunk all day and not worry about anything," he chided. "Don't they realize we're living like cattle?"

"I have to believe we're one day going to see the outside world," Armin said. "Right, Eren?"

Eren cheered up. "Yeah! We can't live in fear of those titans forever."

Armin suddenly grabbed the side of his head. "Errgh!" he groaned. A thunderous pulse passed silently through his brain, the agony as intense as it was brief. For a pained instant, it felt as though his whole brain would come apart. Then, back to normal he went.

"Armin!" Mikasa shouted. "What's wrong?"

Armin looked up at her. "It's weird," he said. "They've happened off and on for three years now, but it's been almost a year since the last one. I thought they were gone."

"What happens?" Eren asked.

"Well," Armin explained, "it's like a bee sting, times a hundred, and in my head. My ears ring, and I feel like my skull's going to pop! This never happened to you?"

"No," Eren replied. "Weird."

"Then it just goes away?" Mikasa asked. "I don't get it."

Armin was about to say something, when the afternoon sky lit up. A single lightning bolt, just beyond the wall, flashed like a second sun. A moment later, a thunderous boom resounded with a billowing cloud of smoke.

"What was that," Eren asked. "An explosion?"

Everyone's horror became real, as a giant hand grabbed the crest of the wall, proceeded by another hand, and an enormous, skinless face. A titan appeared, taller than the wall which enclosed them and protected them. All three children looked on in absolute horror. Any pretense of questioning motives disappeared a few seconds later, when the mysterious titan kicked at the gate, causing a significant chunk of the wall to explode, and huge boulders and debris flying, shattering buildings and crushing innocent people.

A single horrifying thought snapped Eren out of his daze. His mother would be eaten.

"Mom!" he shouted, tearing away from the group. Mikasa jolted out of her stupor as well, taking off after him.

It took a second for Armin to amble off to a running start, but he began chasing them down. "Eren!" he shouted. The two of them already dashed far ahead of him. He turned a familiar corner and saw them turn way ahead. He cursed his weakness and barreled on. As he jumped down a short step, he stumbled forward to continue his sprint. He turned a corner, and skidded to a halt. His worst nightmare, come to life, stood right in front of him.

He stood face to face with a titan.

The giant hand scooped down towards him, and he tried to dash out of the way, only to get caught in its steel grip. Held upside down by his leg, he screamed at the top of his lungs. "Eren! Mikasa! Help!"

The titan swung him up and placed him on his chest in between its upper and lower teeth. Armin turned over, looking upward. He would meet his end at the huge teeth above him. "No! Eren! Help! NO!" Death closed in as the huge upper jaw clamped down. He shut his eyes and felt an intense pain as pressure like he'd never felt before slammed into his lower torso. He screamed.

Then, inexplicably, the pressure stopped. The pain, against all logic, simply ended. He felt the pressure of the jaw, but opened his eyes and saw the teeth trying to bite him in half at the waist, but nothing happening. He began hopelessly banging away at the upper jaw of the titan. His fist did absolutely nothing to it.

At least the first three tries didn't. Upon the fourth one, he slammed his fist into the soft tissue of the upper gum of the titan. Despite all sanity indicating otherwise, the impact shattered the skull of the titan, and what followed was a massive spray of gore and tissue, as well as blood, as the entire upper part of the titan's head blew apart. He didn't have time to marvel at the bizarre turn of events, as the titan fell forward, throwing him fourteen feet forward to plant face down.

He pushed himself up at once. His body had left a sizable impression in the stone. His entire body should have been a wrecked mass of broken bone. Instead, he brushed himself off, and save for a very wet and torn tunic, he had no visible bruises on him whatsoever.

Alarmed at his own lack of observation, he immediately spun around and saw steam rising from the hole in the titan's neck. He looked at his right fist a moment in confusion, then put it to the test, slamming it down into the upper back in a desperate attempt to prevent it from regenerating.

A loud bang rattled windows for dozens of feet around. To understate the carnage would be to say it worked. The entire upper half of the titan popped like a large zit. Blood and chunks of flesh were strewn all around. The titan's body began to disintegrate, revealing a crater six feet in diameter from the epicenter, where Armin had landed his fatal punch.

Armin looked at his hands again. Had God answered some prayer somewhere? Had he simply gone insane? Or, as he worried almost instantly, was he experiencing the last thoughts before dying? Questions raced through his mind.

Then he heard Eren scream.

"Eren! Oh my god, I'm on my way!" He shouted, and began running. The buildings blurred all together. In less time than he imagined, he stood in front of Eren and Mikasa, trying to unearth Carla Yeager from the wreckage of Eren's house.

"MOM!" Eren screamed, pulling upward in vain against the entire roof of the house. Even with Mikasa's help, nothing was happening.

Titan footsteps sounded closer. "Eren! Get out of here! Take Armin and Mikasa and go!" Eren's mother shouted.

Eren looked back. "Armin!" Before he could finish his thought, Armin stepped forward.

 _Please God, if this is your work, don't leave me now_ , Armin pleaded mentally. Gripping a firm section of the roof's lumber structure, he pulled upward with all his might, hoping he hadn't somehow imagined the events that just transpired with the other titan.

The heavy roof groaned as it lifted upwards. Armin found himself almost struck dumb at the lightweight feeling of the roof. This was an entire house roof, and it felt like he had lifted an empty crate.

Mikasa and Eren stood wide-eyed. "Armin, what…?"

"Get your mother out! Don't worry about me!" Armin shouted.

Eren snapped out of his stupor as his mother shouted in pain. Mikasa and he hoisted her carefully. Her legs had been crushed. Her pained voice chilled both kids to the bone. Eren would never forget that sound. As they slid her out of the wreckage, Armin set down the roof with a prominent boom.

Hannes showed up a moment later. "My god, are you kids ok?" He ran up and grabbed one side of Carla. "You're hurt! Let's get you out of here!" The three of them ran ahead with Armin slightly behind.

Huge footsteps clearly changed sound from walking to running. Armin looked back and saw the titan's creepy grin and realized it would catch up all too soon. They weren't moving fast enough. There would have to be a distraction.

"Armin! ARMIN!" Eren shouted. "Where are you going?"

Armin ran up and punched the titan's lower leg. From slightly below the kneecap the leg burst apart in a shower of flesh and bone chunks. Losing its balance and collapsing into a building and then onto the ground didn't change its creepy smile. Armin stood poised and punched it in the neck. The ground quaked as his punch left a sizeable crater and nothing above the titan's upper chest intact. It began to disintegrate.

"There still might be more!" Armin shouted. "Run!"

Hannes, Eren and Mikasa were shaken out of their stupor. Run now, they figured. Question later. Armin followed them close by, keeping lookout and hoping nothing else closed in as they neared the gates. A huge crowd gathered outside the gates. Boats began filling with people desperate to escape the titans and the overrun town. As the group crowded onto a boat to take off, another nightmare emerged.

The gate protecting Wall Maria exploded outward. A fierce-looking titan, covered from head to toe in armor-like plating, had breached the gate. The crowd's screams became louder as titans began pouring in. Eren shivered and clenched his fists as people continued to be eaten. Armin looked at his hands. Could he stay and fight? His newfound strength meant he might make a difference. On the other hand, there were so many of them. They were like the tide, like the stars.

"Armin? Are you okay? What happened back there?" Mikasa asked.

Her question knocked him out of his train of thought. He looked at Carla Yeager and her badly broken legs and thought of the roof weighing little to him. He shook his head. "Mikasa, did I imagine what happened back there?"

Eren suddenly turned to Armin. "No, you didn't," he argued. "My mother's alive because of you."

Eren's mother spoke up. "How did you lift the roof off of me?"

Armin looked over to the people getting eaten as the boat drifted away, and felt guilty about not staying. He turned back to Mikasa. "I couldn't keep up with you guys, and a titan tried to eat me," he explained. "He couldn't bite through me, and his teeth didn't even leave any marks." He lifted his damaged tunic. His skin bore no marks. "I just smacked its head, you know. When I did, it was as if a miracle occurred. I was strong. Impossibly strong. I blasted its head clean off with one blow."

Eren looked at a very nervous Armin. "How…how did this happen?"

Armin shook his head, his mouth slightly agape. "I don't know," he said. "it's impossible. Just a few hours ago, I was the same weak Armin you've known your whole life. Now, I'm…different."

It was at this point Hannes chimed in. "Well, whether it was God or whatever it was, you saved our lives today, Armin," he said. "I have to thank you."

Eren wrapped an arm around Armin. "One day, Armin, we're going to take back this world," he said. "I'm going to exterminate all the titans!" A fierce determination entered his eyes. He didn't say it, but he felt emboldened by the impossible. Armin's new abilities defied all explanation, but it gave him a realization. Nothing he knew could be certain anymore.

Armin took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm with you, Eren," he replied. "Mikasa?"

She simply nodded.

* * *

Two years had passed in the wink of an eye. Eren Yeager and his mother, as well as Mikasa and Armin, all took up the desperate task of survival. Armin had used his powers to help with the food shortages. He could do in one hour what would take a dozen normal farmers a whole day of tilling fields by hand. As the time progressed, he found himself getting stronger. When the government decided to send almost a fifth of the population on a suicide mission to reclaim Wall Maria, Armin thought of joining, until Eren and Mikasa reminded him it wasn't time yet. His powers would be a secret kept until the time was right.

Each of the teenagers decided to join the military. The group sat down at a table for dinner. It was the last night before they would leave to train. Eren had to help his mother since she still didn't walk right, so they set out the plates and served up dinner.

"Hey, Armin!" Carla said. "Is your uniform going to fit?"

He looked up from his plate. "What do you mean?"

"Well, look at you."

Eren and Mikasa looked away from their food for a moment. Both of them noticed a dramatic change in Armin. He was actually a few centimeters taller than Eren, and had some noticeable musculature. "Now that you mention it, he has grown the most of either of us," Mikasa said.

"You've worked very hard, Armin," Eren chimed in. "I'm not surprised."

Armin shook his head, smiling, embarrassed. "It's really not the same, though," he argued. "Somehow, I'm, well, different. Normal people can't lift huge logs all by themselves."

Eren laughed a bit. "Normal people can't kill titans by punching them," he replied.

"Or fly," Armin said, breaking the news.

He went back to eating. The room went silent.

"You developed another ability?" Mikasa said.

Armin set down his fork. He took a deep breath and let it out. "Let me show you." He stood up and pushed his chair back. He levitated a meter off the ground and floated around the room, landing back in front of the table. "I fell out of a tree a few days ago, and stopped in mid-air. After a bit of trial and error, I can control it."

Eren patted him on the back. "Hey, that's great! You'll be killing titans in no time!"

"I should be doing it already," Armin lied.

Mikasa hugged him. "Armin, we talked about this," she countered. "Don't give the military any excuse to be paranoid. They're probably going to be scared enough already. Get in, _then_ use your powers to stop the titans." Armin shot her a look. She didn't have to know.

"So," Carla chimed in, "what are your abilities up to now?"

"Let's see," Armin said. "I can fly, I'm strong, I'm durable, I can shoot heat out of my eyes, I can see through things, and I can hear very quiet things."

"You're practically a god," Mikasa said.

Armin sank his head into his arms. "I don't deserve any of this," he said. "Who am I? I can't be a hero that deserves any of this."

"Whatever reason you have these powers," Carla said, "you were clearly given them to save the human race." She smiled. "And hey, you saved _my_ life, didn't you?"

"You're right," Armin responded. "I'm going to save the human race if I have to kill every titan on Earth with my bare hands." He clenched his fists. "And I swear, I'm going to rip that huge skinless titan and that armored one apart personally."

Eren tapped him on the shoulder. "That's the spirit," he said. "I'm sure once we join the military everything will be fine."

Armin let out a shallow breath. "How am I going to use my powers?"

Mikasa smiled. "I have an idea about that."

"Oh yeah? I want to hear it," Armin replied.

"Well, since the military uses three-dimensional maneuver gear, you can use it to disguise your flight," she explained. "Let them think you're very good at aiming, when really, you'll fly into the titan's vulnerable part."

Armin pointed at Eren's chest. An old key hung from his neck. "What about that?"

Eren shook his head. "I know you could probably just fly over there and get in, but I think we should get better situated first," he said. "I'm joining the military, and then we can talk."

Armin ate. It bothered him that he didn't feel hungry. As late as a year prior, he would get tired if he spent all night sneaking out and killing the local titan population. A few months ago, he stopped feeling tired altogether. He frequently slept just to dream, to feel human again. Then he would wake up, and find that more titans had crept into the area and he'd feel bad about it. Every so often, he'd notice camps and houses going up. A refugee would move into area. A family would notice that titans in certain areas would die at night. Emboldened by the safety, a makeshift village began to form. He felt bad; soon, they'd be enlisting in the army, and moving around. He wouldn't get as many chances to clear out the population, and the refugees would likely have to move again.

"Well, thanks for the dinner, mom," Eren said. "The moon's getting high in the sky. Time for bed."

Mikasa stretched, and headed for her room. "Good night, everybody," she said.

Armin took a deep breath, and headed for the door. "I'll be in bed soon," he said.

Eren motioned at him. "Armin, don't do anything stupid," he said.

Armin waved. "I just need some air," he lied. "I'm not going to do anything rash." The front door creaked shut behind him.

The gentle breeze blew as a full moon illuminated the ground. He lifted up into the sky. Although painless, the temperature dropped around him as he lifted hundreds, then thousands of feet above the dirt. He desperately wanted to use his eyes to see beyond the walls in the distance, to the world beyond. The temptation to fly to somewhere far away, even for just a few moments, to see, to experience it, tugged at his heart. Still, he resisted the urge. Whatever gifted him these powers, obviously intended him to solve the immediate problem first. Still, there was something he could do.

Many miles away, there sat the gaping entrance to Wall Maria. The armored creature had plowed straight through. Armin saw the huge chunks of stone blasted from the wall. In an instant, he knew his action. He propelled himself forward. Having learned how to fly mere days ago, his speed was about that of normal running. He flexed his power like a muscle; surely, he had more power behind him. Predictably, he sped up. Pushing himself, he zoomed forward like a burst, covering the distance of many miles in a moment. His heart caught in his throat as he saw the wall rapidly approaching, and he had to throw his power into full immediate reverse to come to a stop some five feet from the wall. Panting nervously, from almost hitting the wall, he descended to the ground and closed his eyes to relax. At his speed, he realized, he might have burst straight through. He approached the debris.

Scattered for hundreds of feet all around, were chunks of stone and shattered wood, some the size of a fist, some as large as a house. Sections of ruined buildings lay in pieces. As swiftly as his feet allowed, he began gathering debris and piling it inside the hole. After what seemed like several minutes, a gigantic pile began to fill the gaping entrance. Soon, chunks of rock solidly packed the hole from ground to ceiling, spilling out a bit from each side. The entrance choked shut with stone, he had one more task to do.

He knelt in front of the remaining half of a building. A section of the back wall stood almost completely intact. It stood about twice as high as the entrance of the wall. His fingers dug into the rock, his back and arms tensed, and he strained downward with his legs. It occurred to him that one force opposes another, and his lift would press him downward. His feet being small, he would punch through the ground, so he opposed with some upward effort from flight. With a creak and a thud of gravel falling off the top, the wall lifted off its foundation. Plodding forward, using his vision to see through to his target, he stepped forward, and set the barrier firmly against the clogged entrance, sealing it. Finally, a burst of heat from his eyes melted the edges against the wall. He leaned against the rock and panted. It felt like more of a placebo than a real need for air, but damn it, he wanted to feel at least a bit human. A quiet laugh escaped his mouth as he saw the entrance completely barricaded. Backing up, the full effect of his work made him smile. He'd plugged the hole.

Quickly he turned his head, using his eyes. Among the ruins of the nearby towns, were dozens of titans, some dormant, some surprisingly moving. He travelled around for a few minutes, killing the ones that ventured close to him, before he grew tired and the local monster population dwindled. He decided to test his running abilities, bending into a runner's pose, and taking off. At first his footfalls came at a normal pace; a second into the run, the scenery blurred momentarily as he hit incredible speeds.

The clearing of his cabin appeared in front of him in seconds. His mind fired off calculations; he'd ran, on foot, miles in moments. The powers his body had demonstrated continued to confuse and astonish him. Was his earlier super speed in flight, connected to his super speed on foot? Surely, he figured, they'd have to be. But what were his limits? What did this mean? Did he have any limits? A horrifying thought came to him. What if he _was_ a god? Worse, what if such a thought process, as one of a deity, became his _normal_ thought process? Would humans cease to matter to him? Even if he never got stronger than he had become that evening, he already would have no opposition from anything seen thus far. He violently shook his head. No. Armin Arlert would remain Armin; he would die making sure of that, if he had to.

I will not fail you, he swore to everyone and no one in particular. He went inside and went to bed. There would be no invasions into Wall Maria anytime soon. He wondered if even the Armored Titan would be able to punch through the opening. Well, even if it was, he would be there to seal it again. Eren Yeager and Mikasa Ackerman would live to see the end of the titans. He would bring it about with his two hands. He went to bed. In his dreams, he saw a world far beyond Earth, a giant red sun in the sky and beasts of every fantastic variety.

The next day, the trio of Armin, Eren, and Mikasa reported to training camp. The uniform fit Armin tighter than he wanted, but didn't show it as he stood in formation. Their grizzled trainer, his bald head atop tan skin and a downward arrow of a goatee, regarded the trainees with a mixture of bemusement and disgust. He approached the line Armin was in.

"Unfortunately," he bellowed, "you sorry lot have to deal with me, Keith Shadis, as your trainer." He passed by a medium-sized boy with auburn hair down past his ears. The boy had a look of determination like few he'd ever seen. Several had the look of despair, of horror—those, he could understand—but this one, seemed bursting with an eagerness tempered by fire. "You, what's your name?"

"Armin Arlert, sir!" Armin chimed in, pounding his fist against his heart in the standard salute.

Keith scratched his chin. "You seem like you're in a damn hurry to get somewhere!" he shouted. "Is there a fire I'm not aware of?"

"Helped my friends escape from the Titans at Shiganshina," Armin replied. "Saw people I love get eaten. If it's all the same to you, sir, I'd like to get to actual training so I can graduate and start taking these bastards down."

The instructor almost barked a laugh. "Well, aren't _you_ eager to get eaten!" He placed a hand on Armin's head and turned him around. "Face the rest of the men! Show these people what it looks like when someone is eager to die! Say, Arlert, have you ever killed a titan?"

Armin swallowed. "You may not believe me, sir," he replied, "but I have. Surprised it."

This time, Keith did laugh. "Well, Arlert, tell you what. If you can kill a few more, I'd appreciate it."

Armin said nothing as Keith moved on and hazed a few more trainees. With his enhanced hearing, he could tell both Eren and Mikasa had tensed up from his outburst. Nonetheless, he looked forward to getting done with training. He looked around, and saw that many of the soldiers in training were looking at him. One trainee in particular, Jean Kirstein, was shooting him ugly looks. He figured it was due to his eagerness to kill titans, as he recalled Jean specifically wanting to join the Military Police to escape into the inner walls.

The next thing was dinner, after some basic physical exercise to give the commander a basic understanding of what each person was capable of. After changing clothes, each person went to the mess hall for dinner. Armin sat with Eren and Mikasa, and ate, although he didn't have to. Jean approached the trio.

"I heard what you said out there," he said to Armin. "I don't know what sort of thing you're on to, but I don't think for a second you killed a titan."

Armin finished a bite. "I did," he simply retorted, "and I plan on doing it again."

"I think it's damn cowardly of you to want to join the military police and live it up in the inner walls," Eren chimed in.

"Oh yeah?" Jean retorted. "You think you can kill titans? Wake up! The only way is to escape from them."

"What? Why, you…!"

Armin put a hand up, stifling Eren from further argument. He stood up and faced Jean. "Unlike Eren, I'm not going to question your motives," he said. "But I want you to be sure. I've seen with my own eyes that they aren't invincible. I understand you. Really, I do. But, isn't part of the reason why humanity is so beaten down, is because nobody seems to think they can be beaten?"

Jean took a breath. "Well, I'm not going to apologize for being the one who tells it like it is," he argued.

Eren looked at Armin. At times like these, he couldn't help but be amazed. In his mind, somehow, he pictured himself as the heroic type. When he saw his mother, trapped under rubble, a creepy smiling titan closing in, he saw the scene play out in his head. Hannes running away with Mikasa, Armin, and him, and his mother getting eaten. Instead, Armin demonstrated some impossible strength and hoisted the roof off. Ever since that day, he'd seen his once-meek friend grow into a more confident, eager person. The previous Armin would never have confronted someone as loud and ill-tempered as Jean. The previous version of his friend was the kind to follow and be quiet. Now, Eren found himself following Armin. His internal image of Armin and Mikasa standing behind him as he killed the titans, morphed into Armin in the lead with Eren beside. He decided to chime in.

"Jean," Eren said, "I'm going to fight the titans to the end. If you want to join the military police so you can live in peace, I won't stop you. Just stop pretending it's the only option."

The dinner bell chimed, preventing Jean from getting the last word in. Armin and his friends took their plates to the wash basin. As the trainees went to bed, Armin suppressed his hearing. Hearing everything for miles around bothered him sometimes. He could hear things he didn't feel like hearing. He wanted to walk around the woods at night, look around to see the sights and be with nature. With all the people around, however, the odds of him being noticed were too great. It wouldn't exactly do to reveal secrets. People would get suspicious after awhile if they saw him go long periods of time without sleep. He closed his eyes and soon, he was out.

Almost an instant later, a brilliant red light startled him awake. Two grown men, garbed in robes the likes of which had never been seen before, stood looking down at him. Both men wore on their chests, a red stylized 'S' in a diamond-shaped shield, with a yellow background. Who were these men? He looked around. Why was the furniture, the walls, the sky, so foreign? Nothing looked familiar. The sun peeked in through the skylight; a blazing red inferno. Where was he? Why was the sun a different color?

"Is your son going to the same planet as mine?" the dark-haired man with a beard asked of his fellow man. He had a look of pain on his face, mixed with angered certainty.

"Yes," the blonde-haired man replied. "Your son should be launched first, so to make sure that the coordinates are correct."

The dark-haired man did not agree. "Look, I know you're worried," he argued, "but it's for the best that your son goes first. Kar-El is readier than my Kal-El is. You know he's hardier and probably more likely to survive the experience."

"Armin!"

Eren's voice startled him awake. He looked at his friend, who looked a bit nervous. "Oh, Eren," he said, shaking the sleepiness out of his eyes and shifting to a sitting position. "Sorry. I just had the strangest dream."

Eren's eyebrows raised. "Really?" he asked. "What?"

"Well," Armin began, "I was sitting in some kind of seat—I…think I was a baby, or something—and these two men were talking about sending their sons on a journey. I…" he slapped his head. "I didn't recognize anything. Everything looked different, the clothes, the stuff around me." He looked at Eren. "The sun, was _red_ in the sky."

Eren leaned his head back, squinting slightly in confusion. "Red? Weird."

"Yeah, I don't understand it either." He shook his head again. "Well, let's go see what practice has to offer!"

Eren placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Remember, be careful."

Armin nodded. "I know."

Practice that morning consisted of the three-dimensional maneuver gear he'd heard about from Mikasa. As he clasped the wires onto his belt, he found himself lifted a short distance off the ground. Righting himself in the air, without assistance from his powers, took a few minutes. His body wanted to whirl completely over and bury his face in the dirt. He had to bend his body in new directions every few seconds or so, adjusting the load of his weight on the cables. After all, he had to make it look like he used the gas canisters to propel himself and the cables to maneuver in the air. After a few minutes, he had the entire act down. He disengaged from the cables and watched the others, and focused on Mikasa. She looked almost bored, as well down as she had it.

Then he looked at Eren. He gasped.

Eren planted face first in the dirt. A look of horror on his face told the tale as the fellow students gathered around to snicker and openly mock him. More than a few comments about his bravado the evening earlier spread around. The drill instructor let Eren out of his harness. Armin felt he had to do something to protect his friend.

"I…I don't…" Eren stammered. "How…?"

"Wait a moment!" Armin approached behind his friend. "Eren, stand up a minute. I wonder." He felt around the belt for a few seconds before seeing through the material. He would grasp for any excuse at this moment. After inspecting the innards of the belt a moment, he saw that there was a defective part. "Wait! I found a problem!"

Keith let out a nasal snort. "Don't try to make up something!"

Armin shook his head. He unbuckled the belt and handed it to the instructor. "No, sir!" he said. "Take a look at the clasp!"

Keith held the belt up to the sunlight and examined it. A metal piece stuck out. His eyes went wide. "Wow, I take it back," he exclaimed. "This is a first. I've never seen this component break before. Suppose it'll have to be added to the maintenance list." He looked at Armin. "Why don't you give him yours for a moment?"

Armin saluted, then unbuckled his belt and held it out. Eren clasped it around his waist and was up in the harness in under a minute. Armin held his breath.

Eren wavered back and forth a moment, his hands shook. "Please," he thought to himself.

He righted in midair and held firm. He held tight and soon found himself comfortable in a stable position. Armin let out a sigh of relief.

"Arlert!" Keith cried out. "What made you think to check the equipment?"

Armin took a breath. "Well, sir, I have faith in my comrades that they wouldn't be so quick to fail. Eren's always been the one who can prove me wrong. If I can do it, surely he can."

Eren looked at his friend, bewildered. Why was Armin being humble? He wiped an eye and almost lost balance before being let down to the ground.

"Well, Yeager, looks like your friend just gave you a full sales pitch!" Keith bellowed. "Don't waste it!"

"I won't, sir!" Eren cried.

Armin headed towards where Mikasa was, walking towards the fields for their second bit of training. "Armin, wait!" Eren said.

"What?" Armin stopped and turned. He wondered about the curious expression on Eren's face.

"You just told him I was better than you!" he argued.

"Well…yeah, I did," Armin agreed.

Eren gestured with his hands. "I mean, well, you're the one who saved my mom and me, and Mikasa. I was pretty useless."

"Don't worry about it," Armin said, turning to leave.

"No, wait!" He put a hand on Armin's shoulder. "I'm not ok with that!"

"Eren!" Armin said. His cry silenced his friend. On his face was a look of worry and concern. "Listen to me. _Normal_ folk get credit for doing good. I'm not normal folk."

Eren's hands hung at his side, his mouth dropped a bit. "Armin," he simply uttered.

Armin shook his head. "I'll do whatever I can," he said. "But I don't deserve the credit you do, I can't be hurt the way you can." He stared into Eren's eyes, and his friend would take that look to the grave.

"It doesn't count if the Titans can't hurt me."


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

Eren found himself flipped cleanly over onto his back. A part of training he didn't quite understand the need for was one on one combat against fellow humans. Reiner Braun possessed a physical strength he doubted would be matched by anyone other than Armin. The thought baffled him sometimes; how strong _was_ Armin? He'd seen his friend lift a roof off his mother, and a scouting party travelling the wall's edge had discovered the hole in Wall Maria plugged, with no official explanation how. He'd asked, and Armin admitted the deed. The titan population in Wall Rose had declined considerably in the past year or so, as the Scouting Regiment made their kills. Armin had also admitted to killing titans at night, though, at his friend's insistence, he'd cut down on it to avoid attention.

"I don't understand how this is important," Eren said out loud, switching positions with Reiner. "Why do we need to learn to fight against other humans? The titans are our enemy."

"You never know when you're going to encounter thieves in the real world," Reiner replied. "Besides, it might come in handy."

Reiner charged and Eren dodged and countered, exactly as had been done to him. Reiner pointed at Annie. "There's someone who's a natural," he said.

Eren lowered his eyebrows. "She's slacking off without the commandant noticing."

A half-smile appeared on Reiner's face. "Let's show her the will of a real soldier," he goaded. His smile widened when he saw Eren take the bait.

Armin watched this unfold from the other side of the field, where he practiced with several different people. He saw Annie make short work of both Eren and Reiner. The technique that she used on both of them, pushing the attacking fist out of the way, pressing down on the shoulder slightly, then twisting behind them and sweeping their leg out, he'd never seen before. He approached. "Annie," he said, getting her attention, and breaking both Reiner and Eren out of their stupor. "Do you think you can teach me a few moves?"

Annie regarded Armin. His face didn't match his body at all. A quarter of the way between Eren and Reiner in height, and with a muscular build that indicated serious effort in strength-training, Armin Arlert looked like a statue from the neck down. When she looked at his face, however, he had a soft, modestly-rounded face that screamed cute baby or innocent bystander, not fierce warrior. Added to that was his chin-length bobbed hair, and he could easily be mistaken for a girl, face-wise. This had to be the oddest mishmash of traits she'd ever seen on a guy.

"I guess," she said, coldly, adopting a boxing stance. "Charge at me."

He adopted a stance and dashed forward, barehanded, going for a punch. She ducked beneath his strike, grabbed his right arm, and used his momentum to flip him over her, onto his back. As he lay on the ground, she placed a fist on his throat. "Hip toss," she said, standing back. "Great on enemies that are moving towards you. Uses their momentum against them. Go for a kick." He stuck his foot straight out towards her abdomen. She grabbed his calf and heel and dropped inward, using her body weight and falling momentum to spin him over, onto his back. "Great. Go for a punch to my face." He did, and she ducked beneath his right punch, draped an arm around his left shoulder, locked in her other hand, and swept his right leg out, throwing him forward to the ground. "Now, are you getting it?"

He stood up, slowly. "Yeah," he said, brushing himself off. "I'm definitely getting it."

She nodded and began walking away. "So, now you know what to do should you become military police and someone attacks you," she said.

Armin tilted his head slightly. "You seem a bit…angry," he replied.

She turned around. "None of this matters," she retorted. "Don't you see? The better you are at killing titans, the farther you can get from them."

"Yeah, I noticed that," Armin said, suspicious now that he put thought into something that he'd noticed only in passing.

They trained for slightly longer before Armin realized he was preoccupied with what Annie had said. He'd noticed that only the best titan killers were considered for military police duty, but that made no sense. After a few more minutes of training, he left the field and Eren followed him.

"Hey, what was Annie talking about?" Eren asked.

Armin sat down on a log. "It's odd," he replied. "They measure how good we are at fighting titans, and tell the best of the bunch they can live far away from them."

Eren took a seat, the question weighing on his mind. "Yeah, I suppose…" He had an automatic response ready, but when he stopped to think about it, the tactic made no sense whatsoever. "You know, that is the oddest thing. Why would they do that?"

"I don't know," Armin added, "but I don't think it makes a lot of sense."

Eren watched the trainees continue sparring. Sasha and Connie got reprimanded for acting like fools, and Jean and his partner weren't taking it seriously at all. "I want to get better at it, even if it means this nonsense." He saw Reiner and Bertolt heading off the training field and towards the barracks.

"I just want this training over with," Armin argued.

Eren chuckled. "There was a time where I honestly expected I'd be the one helping you," he said. "Look at you."

Armin sighed. "Eren, secrets be damned," he said, turning to look at his friend. The dark-haired boy, normally motivated by anger, sat almost in awe of his friend's expression of stoic declaration. "I'm not letting the titans get you."

"Armin…" Eren began, trailing off. After having told his friend time and again that the secret of his incredible power must be kept secret until the world was ready for it, he realized at once he'd been acting as a parent. His concern for his friend had demonstrated a lack of trust, he felt, and Armin's assurance of protection reminded him that, at the end, the boy had to deal with the powers he possessed, and nothing could spare him his responsibility. The thought occurred to him of all the nights Armin must have tried to sleep, knowing the threat could be dealt with so easily, if only he could openly fight the enemy. "Look, I'm not going to be so easy to kill." He smiled, his smile drew a similar expression out of his friend.

The commanding officer called for a cessation of the disarming and physical combat exercises, and the trainees headed off to the barracks for lunch. They filed into the barracks after receiving their rations for the afternoon and sat to eat. Mikasa and Eren sat near Armin, at a far table in the center near the back. Armin scanned the room. He caught Reiner looking at him. Bertolt was saying something to him, and when he saw Armin glance at him, he quickly turned away. Reiner then made what Armin knew to be a deliberate attempt not to look at him. Noticing that nobody sat too close to either of them, and their lips were moving, ever so slightly, he looked down at his plate, scraped his fork over the food, and ate. While putting on the show of ignoring them, he opened up his hearing powers, and tuned the explosive blast of sound in his ears down to the whispered conversation of the two.

"That Arlert bothers me," Reiner said. "You pay attention to him at all?"

"No," Bertolt replied. "What do you mean?"

"He doesn't seem…worried…like everyone else is."

Bertolt let a quiet breath out his nose. Armin took that to be a sign of not understanding. "Ok."

"No," Reiner clarified, "what I mean, is, next training exercise, I want you to train with him. Even that Yeager kid, as suicidal and eager as he is, always has a look of concern. I can just _feel_ that he knows he can die at any moment. Arlert, seems, I don't know, detached."

"So," Bertolt asked, "he doesn't understand how dangerous the titans are?"

"That can't be it," Reiner countered. "He bragged openly about killing a titan. In front of trainees. And the way he said it means he's either the best liar I've ever seen in my life, or he's telling the truth."

A faint click only Armin could hear told him Bertolt had clenched his teeth inside his closed mouth. "That means he at least believes he's not as killable as everyone else," Bertolt understood. "You think he's a titan shifter?"

A jolt of fear ran through Armin's body. Only by valiant effort did he not drop his fork into his food. He closed his eyes a moment and stilled his breathing. What was a 'titan shifter?' Still, he did nothing and waited for the conversation to continue. If they had crucial information to reveal, he wanted to hear it.

"I'm not sure, but either way, get a feel for him and tell me later what you think," Reiner instructed.

Armin swore mentally. He guessed correctly that the two had become concerned he somehow had the ability to listen to them and they'd cut their conversation short because of it. He would have to work on his espionage skills.

His thoughts were cut short as he noticed Eren stared angrily at Jean. Jean seemed to be bragging, in the form of giving tips to those seated near him about how to properly use the maneuver gear's gas.

"What gives you the right to talk down to me?" Armin heard the fevered cry of Jean and rolled his eyes. Eren stormed forward like a man possessed. His purpose and need bled through to the furrow of his brow and the clench of his teeth.

"I'm not a lazy coward like you who doesn't want to accept his responsibility!" Eren shouted.

They grabbed each other's collars. Armin attempted to interject some reason into the showdown. "Now, come on, we're all in this together," he stated.

"No!" They both stood shocked at Eren's declaration. "I'm tired of this guy acting like it's ok that he just walks away from his duty!"

"I'm sick of you!" Jean cried, tightening his grip on Eren's shirt. "You think you're above everyone else." They pulled each other closer, to the point that Armin prepared for them to knock foreheads.

"Alright, that's enough," Armin said. He placed his hands on their breastbone and physically pushed them apart. "I'm not about to have a fistfight when we have an enemy willing to eat us alive."

Eren felt his firmly planted feet sliding backward, the rubber making a quiet squeal. Anger departed him in seconds; he found himself in awe and fear at the same time. When his bob-haired friend had pulled the roof off Carla Yeager, and a lot of times cutting wood, he'd _seen_ the ridiculous, impossible strength. Now, for the first time, he felt it. The tensed calves and thighs of his legs, his body weight, none of it mattered. His friend moved him as effortlessly as sliding a light wooden chair. In front of him he felt a barrier of solid concrete in the form of Armin's hand. For the first time in his life, he looked in the eyes of his ally, and saw what the words had meant. "It doesn't count if the titans can't hurt me," Armin had said.

Jean almost forgot what he was in the middle of thinking when he slid backwards. Armin's effortless push broke the stupor of his anger. He stared at the boy with amazement. "What, what are you?" He asked.

"Someone who doesn't want to have to do what I have to do," Armin replied. He stood in front of Eren. "Look, Jean, I get your feelings. I do. You're a realist. You know how many here are likely to die."

Eren's protest came at once. "Armin…!"

Armin silenced him with a single wave of his hand, without even breaking eye contact. "The difference is," he clarified, "I don't have the luxury of being able to sleep soundly knowing I didn't do what was needed of me when it was needed. You can. I'm honestly _not_ being sarcastic when I say that I envy you for that."

Jean's grit teeth returned for a moment. Then, as the words sank in, he huffed. "You think you're so much better than me?"

Armin blinked in place of a head shake. "No, Jean, when it comes down to it, I'm not," he admitted. "I honestly wish that fighting the titans was some kind of errand I could put off. I find myself wanting to close my eyes and wake up, and find it a bad dream." He cleared his throat. "But, my friends are going to give their all. That means I have to as well."

Jean dropped his fighting stance and stood at ease. "That's all fine and dandy, but don't expect me to give my life just because your friend is a suicidal idiot," he chastised.

"I wouldn't force your decision," Armin said. "But do us all a favor, and if you plan on going into the military police, drop the bragging act."

The door slid open. "Alright!" Keith Shadis said, peering in. "Enough chit-chat! Time for the next round of training!"

Armin closed his eyes and opened them slowly. He tried to avoid glancing over at Bertolt, and he could tell both Reiner and he were trying to avoid glancing at him. He calmly walked out of the dining hall. Footsteps approached, and he could tell who it was.

"So, you want to train with me this time?" Bertolt said, slightly nervous. Armin couldn't tell if the nervousness was genuine or not.

"Sure," he said, faking positivity. He hadn't expected to become so suspicious of the two, but only an idiot would have the ability to listen in and not use it. Originally hoping their conversation didn't give him any reason to suspect them, now he had more than one mystery to unravel. Based on the way they spoke of him, they seemed to be analyzing the members of the Survey Corps. What was a titan shifter? Based on the words in the term, he suspected it was something to do with changing into a titan. That struck him as ludicrous, but then again, he had impossible features as well. He looked up at Bertolt, carrying a curious expression of negativity buried underneath his half-smile. "We have to get to know each other, right?"

Bertolt seemed to mentally flinch, and the subtlety of it told him scores about the taller man. "Y-Yeah," he said, stuttering slightly. Bertolt wondered for a moment if Armin had somehow heard him, but he dismissed it off-hand as impossible at the volume they were whispering, and the fact that the fair-haired boy had sat meters away.

Entering the field, they took up stances against one another. Bertolt took the fake knife in his right hand, held it by his side, and charged. The whole time, Armin could tell, despite the taller man's efforts to disguise his analytical gaze, the calculating sight set on him. He could tell the sizing-up had begun. He mentally smiled; if someone had hired these two as a spy, he would not disappoint that person.

Armin waited for his opponent to thrust the knife forward. He placed his right hand on Bertolt's hand, spun around, placed his left on his foe's chest, and swept the legs out, pushing him backwards. Bertolt landed on his back, staring up at his legs.

"Annie teach you that one?" he asked.

"Watched her do it to someone else," Armin replied.

Bertolt climbed to his feet and stood back. "Alright, now you be the attacker."

Armin held the knife by his side and charged. Bertolt did something unexpected; he dropped to his knees, pulled Armin's upper body down, and pushed his lower body up, flipping him vertically in the air, dropping his foe flat on his back.

Armin kipped up. "Reiner teach you that one?" he asked.

"Actually, he did," Bertolt replied. A chuckle escaped his lips. "He's a lot stronger than I am, so he does it a lot better than me." He coughed. "Can I ask a personal question?"

Armin turned around, trying not to betray his curiosity. "Go ahead."

Bertolt took a deep breath. "How did you kill a titan?"

Armin clenched his teeth discreetly. "Well," he said, after a moment to construct a believable lie, "it was a bit of luck, actually. The titan was heading towards a friend of mine, not paying attention to me. I climbed on the roof of a house, jumped off, and stabbed it in the neck."

Bertolt seemed to think for a moment, curious, and shrugged. "I guess it isn't that surprising," he said. "You seem awfully athletic."

"So," Armin said. "What's your story?"

The harsh breath that escaped told Armin much of what he wanted to know. "Out where I live, we didn't know about the breach as soon as the nearby villages," he explained. "I heard what I thought was thunder for a few days beforehand." He gave a harsh look. "By the time we found out, it was too late for most of them."

Armin bowed his head, respectfully. "I'm sorry."

Bertolt shook his head slightly. "No, don't worry about it," he said. "I just want to get back there. No grand ideas for me." He paid close attention to the fair-haired young man the whole time. What Reiner had told him seemed to be true; what he saw in the young man's eyes was the look of the weight of a huge task ahead. Nowhere did he see the unease of near-certain death he saw in everyone else, even in the boy's friends. Everyone else carried the look of knowing, of being sure death waited around the corner. No, Armin carried a look of obligation rather than the look of doom. It was the damnedest thing to him. He'd never seen that look before on someone's face.

"I just want these damn titans to go away," Armin said. "Everything would be better if they were to just vanish." He chuckled a bit. "But yeah, wish in one hand, right?"

He drew a smile out of his taller friend. "Wouldn't that just be fine and dandy," Bertolt replied. He put the knife down. "Want to do the grappling exercise?"

Armin held out his hands, which locked with Bertolt's. The taller man leaned forward, attempting to leverage his height and weight advantage. He didn't want to easily overpower his foe and give it away, so he dropped to his back and used his legs to flip the man over him onto the ground. He turned over and pushed himself to his feet. "I figured that you'd try to use your height against me," he said, "so I improvised."

Bertolt laughed a moment, then wiped his face. "You're just something else," he said. "I can't fool you for a moment."

"Got to keep on top of things," Armin replied. "I have to be cleverer than the average person. People like Levi and Erwin survived this long by being above average."

"That's true," Bertolt agreed.

They trained for about another hour or so, before moving on to practicing with securing their equipment before a mission. That evening, after dinner, they retired to bed. Armin lie in bed, listening to see if Reiner and Bertolt said anything else, but they didn't risk it in the quiet of the barracks. He closed his eyes and went to sleep. It took a few tries.

The next scene he saw, was in some kind of chamber. There was a light that shone out of a section of the ceiling above him, which hung less than a foot from his face. Before he knew it, the light turned into a square two feet on a side. A man's likeness appeared out of the light, pictured against a background. "Kar-El," the man, who Armin noted looked remarkably like him, said, "our world is dying. The once great planet Krypton is doomed. My name is Zor-El, and I am your father. Your uncle, Jor, and myself, have been spending much of the last six months our planet has left, preparing the ship by which we intend to save your life."

"Your new world is a planet with a younger sun, which will grant you powers the likes of which will serve you in your mission. You see, Kar-El, your cousin Kal-El will be sent to the Earth with you, and together with him, you will have to lead the humans."

Zor-El coughed and turned the view to outside the building he stood in. "Unfortunately, neither I nor your uncle Jor-El will be able to make the journey with you," he said. "The humans will look like you, but you will be able to do things they could only dream of. As such, I'm trusting their future into yours and Kal-El's hands. Jor-El and myself had a lengthy discussion, and we're sending you first. My son, I know I'm forcing a task on you I cannot rightly ask you to do, but these humans will surely be able to achieve their highest potential if you are there to lead them."

Zor-El approached the camera. He held up a necklace, with a stylized 'S' in a shield shape. "This, is the symbol of the House of El," he explained. "By the time you hear these words, I will be long dead. I love you more than you can imagine. My consciousness will be with you in the computer of your ship." The next thing he saw was the view changing to the exterior of the chamber. The Earth was rapidly approaching in view, surrounded by a sea of darkness dotted with stars.

"Father!"

"Armin, wake up!"

Armin shot up to a seated position, almost as if he were stung by a wasp. He looked at Eren, who was holding his shoulder, nervously. "Eren, was that a dream?"

Eren touched Armin's cheek. "Are you ok?" A thought came to him. "What was that word?"

Armin furrowed his brow. "What word?"

"You just said some word in a language I've never heard before," Eren explained.

"Oh," Armin replied, wiping his eyes. "I'm sorry if I scared you." Eren sat back. "You won't believe this, Eren. Let's talk outside." He practically leapt out of bed. Pulling his white pants over his boxers, he stretched, then reached for his shirt and jacket. His boots were the last to go on.

Outside the barracks, Eren came up to him when they stood away from the rest of the crowd. The sky overhead looked prepared to rain. "So," Eren asked, "what were you going to tell me?"

As the drizzle turned to a downpour, Keith Shadis had a table set up with a pack and a poncho for each person. Armin told Eren everything he'd seen in the dream as they walked to the table. Eren walked in almost complete silence. He huffed with effort as he lugged the pack onto his back. Armin donned his poncho and hoisted the pack effortlessly onto his back. "So, what do you think?" Keith gave the order to march into the forest, and they proceeded.

Eren swallowed, trying to construct a thought as he marched on. "So, let me get this straight," he uttered, somewhat quietly, "there are worlds beyond this Earth? And you're from one of them?"

" _If_ this is real," Armin said. "I'm not sure either way, but if this is true, that would explain my abilities."

A slight giggle escaped Eren. "And I thought the titans were the strangest thing," he admitted. "If you're from another world, that changes everything. I can't even imagine the implications."

Keith Shadis wasn't the only one watching Armin Arlert. Bertolt and Reiner were as well. "I trained with him," Bertolt explained, "just like you said. I got the feeling that, you're right. There's something off about him."

Reiner nodded along with his partner's whisper. "I think we need to keep watching him."

From atop his horse, Keith looked at each of the cadets and mentally gave his judgment of them. When he got to Armin, he gave him a prolonged stare. The boy was hard to place. "His performance is exceptional—possibly the best I've ever seen," Keith thought, "in terms of physicality, but he's got the look of someone dreading a stubborn chore." Armin had the look of someone aloof and frustrated, rather than everyone else's deadly seriousness or joking denial of reality. At the same time, he saw what most could not—the eagerness to move forward. The titans seemed to the boy, based on his manner, something holding him back from moving even further forward. "What are you, Armin Arlert?"

After a long march, they came to a setup in the middle of the forest, where giant wooden people, with a cushion on the nape where the vital point would be. "Alright!" Keith shouted. "The rain's letting up, so I think now's a good time to practice with our maneuver gear." The group gathered in a circle, and pulled out their backpacks. Each person slipped their belts on and snapped the clasps together. Armin fastened his belt and adjusted his gas canister. He'd practiced earlier, but now would be a better chance to do so. He had to figure out the optimal way to disguise his flight. What frustrated him the most was having to hide his powers as best he could. It struck him as odd. Others had to put in tremendous effort to excel at their task; his task of looking like the rest of them took deep concentration. What entitled him to such power? Why couldn't someone else be destined as he was? The thought exited him as soon as it came. His powers meant he probably wouldn't die.

Eren gave him a nod and took off with a leap and a burst of gas from the canister. The ropes dug into the tree and he zoomed forward headed for the first titan mockup. He noticed Mikasa had delivered a deep gash into the cushion. He propelled himself downward and took a chunk out, albeit a bit smaller. He chastised himself for not being as able as her.

Armin took off, using the gas as he needed. Hiding his flight proved more difficult than he expected. He might be new to training with his comrades, but the experts would doubtless be able to see flaws in his physics. He had to feel the direction and degree of force his equipment moved him in. It became a matter of supporting his actions with his power, rather than relying on them. Zooming through the trees, he took a huge chunk out of each of the titan mockups. He landed and unbuckled his equipment.

Keith Shadis found himself looking at Arlert with surprise. A number of the candidates impressed him, but this kid had given him a shock. When the kid had boasted, with his feminine looking face and girlish hair on full display, that he had taken out a titan, the drill instructor adopted a skepticism of religious proportions. The kid looked like a girl's head pasted on a man's body, and yet, despite every voice in Keith's head screaming that this guy would turn out to be a puff of hot air, he succeeded. And yet, as he half-grinned, something seemed off. Watching the kid in motion looked…too perfect. At first, the stumbling, odd flight patterns of inexperience showed themselves just like everyone else. After a few test runs, though, his trajectories seemed to improve, as if a magic wand were waved mid-motion. He would have sworn he saw the kid zoom forward, with _no_ expulsion of gas to propel him. If he got a chance to see Commander Erwin again, he'd want them to see this kid.

Armin put his pack on and leaned against a tree. After hearing what Bertolt and Reiner had told him earlier, he checked his emotions. They'd considered him odd for feeling detached, for looking at the titans as a chore rather than a threat. The thought sank in for the first time, that they'd never seemed to him as big a problem after he discovered he could kill them almost effortlessly. His mind drifted back to how he felt back on the day of the fall of their hometown. Thoughts of confusion and bewilderment raced through his mind on that day, as he'd stared down what should have been certain death.

Now, he found himself wishing the ordeal to be over, the thoughts came to him that they were a nuisance rather than a horrifying brutality of nature. Guilt began to creep over him. If Eren or Mikasa were to be bitten by one of them, it would be instantly fatal. There would be no miracles, no surprises. For them, or anyone else, it would be the end. Only he, for now, was different. He forced himself to see it from their point of view. He had to feel serious. The thought came to him of what would happen if his friends died. The image made him shudder.

Mikasa approached him. "Armin, what's wrong?"

Her question made him smile a bit. "Oh, nothing," he lied. "I'm just jittery. Pretty soon, we're going to go up against actual titans."

"You're an amazing guy," she said, "but if there's one thing you're not, it's a good liar."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," he replied. "I'm worried." He looked at her sternly. "About _me_. Back when the wall was breached, I was as scared as everyone else. Now…" He trailed off. The look on her face told him he didn't have to finish. She touched his cheek and turned him to face her.

"Look," she chided. "You may not believe it, but that tells me you're _not_ someone I have to worry about. Eren is all-in and ready to go all-out. Some of the others are scared shitless." She put her hands on his shoulders. "You have a unique position. You can do what absolutely no one else can do."

He cocked his head a bit to the left as he looked at her. "What?"

"You," she said, matter-of-factly, "can keep a level head." She pulled closer to him. "You have objectivity." She backed off. "So," She switched to a whisper, "what's this about other worlds?"

He leaned in. "So, Eren told you?" he asked. She nodded. "These dreams are too detailed, in my opinion, to be just dreams. I don't have the creativity to make this up."

She almost chuckled. "I can't even imagine there being other worlds out there," she admitted. "I mean, it isn't impossible, but what would it be like? I mean, beyond the sky?"

Armin closed his eyes a moment. "Apparently, the Earth is a huge ball going around the sun," he said, demonstrating the motion with his hands, "in a sea of blackness."

"A blackened sea?" she asked, trying to imagine it.

"No," Armin corrected. "Imagine a room, pitch black, except so big you can't see the walls even with the light from the sun."

The thought came to Mikasa. She saw the Earth as a tiny ball in a very large, dark room, with light from the sun shining on it. "Wow," she said. "If that's true, that's amazing. So much to think about."

"What gets me," he replied, "is what it means if it's true." They began the walk back to the barracks. "The man who looked like me, saying he was my father, said he was sending me here because the world we were on was dying."

Mikasa pondered the implications of what Armin said. "So, the trip would have taken so long," she ruminated out loud, "that you could have arrived much earlier or later."

"If this is true," he concurred, "that means I could have arrived here hundreds of years ago or later. I could have never met you or Eren."

"I'm still glad you're here, Armin," she said.

That night, Armin went to sleep and saw an image in his mind of the craft he'd come to Earth on, smashing through the ground. He saw memories of himself as a baby, crawling up through the hole made by the vehicle, crawling for what seemed like hours before being discovered by a man. How had he remembered such a thing? Then, as if struck by lightning, the pathway stuck in his mind. He could remember where it was. His eyes flew open and he sprung up in bed, almost gasping. A few murmurs stirred the silence and he waited for quiet breathing to become the dominant noise once again. He could see everything, so he waited until he could be sure no one was awake, and he floated down to the floor. He quickly put his shoes on and his clothes. Floating out the door, so as not to create a noise, he looked for where the sentries posted to keep watch were stationed, and their direction of looking. Once out of sight, he took off into the air. The moonlight provided only a dim illumination, but he saw the area his target was in. A thirty-square-mile patch of land where he could clearly make out similar landmarks between his memories and his current location, was where he carefully scanned the ground. His eyes caught it.

With a ragged breath, he caught sight of a patch of land where a hole had been filled in. He descended and looked down, through the Earth, until he came across a metallic object, roughly oblong and somewhat pointed at the tip, buried a hundred feet down. Kneeling down, he buried both hands in the dirt and shoveled away at ridiculous speed. Finally, after a minute of digging, he came across the craft. He got a grip on two pointed pieces sticking out, and pulled upward, wrenching his muscles until the ground gave way and he flew upward, ripping the object from the dirt and rock.

Landing, he set the vehicle on the ground next to him. The machinery, silent at first, began to glow on a particular spot on the upper curvature. Stepping closer, the beam of light concentrated on his eyes and he found himself somehow pulled out of his thoughts and into a strange scene. The world of his dreams had come to life around him. He stood in a stone and metal structure, a large dome ceiling overhead. His eyes travelled the entire surface of the building, drawing awe out of him as he saw architecture he'd never seen before. Below the ceiling stood a doorway, revealing out into the blood red sky beyond. His mouth hung slightly open in disbelief.

"Kar-El," a voice cried out.

Armin turned around, seeing a man striking in his similar appearance, wearing a multi-colored set of robes unlike anything seen before. "Who…" Armin began.

"I am your father, Zor-El," he replied. "I've been waiting for this moment for quite some time."

Armin's eyes widened. He swallowed as he approached. "I thought you were dead," he said.

Zor-El shook his head. "I am," he corrected the boy, "but my thoughts and memories are in this vessel. I placed my mind in this in order to be of guidance to you."

Armin ran his hands through his hair, nervously. "I…I need to know," he stammered, "I have so many questions."

Zor-El clasped his hands behind his back and paced forward. "Your—our—home, is the planet Krypton. Sadly, we discovered our world's doom far too late to save everyone. A select few ships scattered to the stars, but for the vast majority of us, including your mother and my brother's family, our world's destruction was the end." He looked intently at Armin. "Jor-El and myself worked tirelessly to save our only children."

"Father," Armin said, not entirely used to the word, "tell me. What do you think I should do?"

Zor-El's face grew solemn. "I do not have all the answers," he replied. "Their weapons of war and engines of destruction are barbaric, their practices primitive and beliefs antiquated. But I think even you have seen their capacity for good." He drew back his breastplate, showing the symbol on his suit. "This symbol, this is the symbol of our family. The House of El. It is a symbol of hope. It is meant to be a beacon in the dark. You must be facing feelings of trepidation," a tear came to his eye, "the likes of which I can't imagine. These humans will stumble. They will fall." He put a hand on Armin's shoulder. "In time, they will join you in the sun."

Armin shook his head. "How can you say that?" He argued. "The titans are too much for them to handle. How can even I prevent them from going extinct?"

Zor-El stepped closer, a foot between himself and his son. "Kar-El," he said, sternly. "You must not assume what you see is the truth. I may not have all the answers, but I know this much: what you see, is _not_ the whole truth."

Armin squinted in suspicion. "You mean, the walls aren't all that's left?"

Zor-El almost laughed. "If you look at the big picture," he advised, "perhaps you'll see everything."

Armin took a deep breath. His suspicions had been piqued by Reiner and Bertolt's use of the phrase "titan shifter," but his father put the issue to rest. His mind had been made up. He would assist the humans wholeheartedly and would not settle for what appeared to be true. He would find out what was true himself. "Thank you, father," he said. "I'm not going to quit. I'll try to be the best I can."

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER THREE**

Armin stood next to Eren as the graduation list sounded aloud from the instructor. A few of the cadets placed close to where he expected them to. Mikasa came in first. Bertolt and Reiner placed near the top, with Annie close behind. Through a combination of carefully controlling his abilities, Armin placed right behind Eren. With a bit more effort, it would have been nothing to place first. That didn't seem like a wise idea to him, though. The last thing he wanted was to attract undue attention. There would be plenty of time to demonstrate what he could do, once people understood and accepted whom he was. After the readout had completed, the cadets returned to the mess hall for celebration. They needed it; soon, the horrors of war would be unleashed upon them all.

Jean pouted about how he placed behind both Eren _and_ Armin. As the graduating cadets enjoyed themselves, Thomas Wagner and a small bunch of the others gathered around the two most controversial. "You mean you're joining the Scout Regiment?" Thomas asked, a sharpness of urgency in his voice.

"Yeah," Armin replied.

"Yes," Eren said, at the same time.

They shared a glance and a smile. Thomas found himself torn between horror and bewilderment. "But, why? The Titans can't be defeated! There's no overcoming them!"

"What, so we're just supposed to calmly wait to die?" Eren snapped. The dull roar of conversation died out instantly. A moment where a pin drop could be heard passed uncomfortably.

Armin put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Eren, it's okay," he said. Eren had more to say, but he stifled his tongue. Armin looked at the group hastily and drew his attention to those nearest to him. "Look, I'll believe they can't be beaten when it becomes clear every effort has failed. So far, there's still so much to be done. I haven't tried everything I'm capable of." He took a step forward. "Until I can say that, I'm not quitting."

Eren moved forward, taking back the initiative. He loved his friend, but the fair-haired youth tended to take charge. It made him proud, but at the same time, it could annoy the hell out of him. "Look at all we know about the Titans!" he said. "Are we really going to waste all those lives by giving up?"

The silence slowly gave way to the dim murmuring of people, some complaining about Eren and Armin's do-or-die attitude, some praising them, and some even being motivated by them. Eren, however, stormed off, moderately upset by the whole ordeal and Armin followed him.

"I'm joining the Scout Regiment," Mikasa said, approaching them, seated on the steps outside.

Eren wanted to protest, but he knew it would be pointless. "So, we're all together still?" he said.

Armin smiled. "This is finally it," he added. "We're finally going to be fighting."

Mikasa turned to Armin. "So, how's the training going?"

Armin looked at her, his smile returning. "I believe I've got it down," he said. "I've figured out how to use them together with the gear, as well as by themselves."

"You've worked so hard to blend in," Eren added. "I hope the day comes soon where it won't be necessary."

Armin gave him a serious look. "If either of your lives are threatened," he said, "I won't be worrying about blending in."

Eren smiled. "Let's hope it doesn't come to that."

As the trio talked, the revelers continued discussing their futures, and two in particular, Bertolt and Reiner, sat in the corner of the hall, writing on some parchment. Somehow, they felt that Armin was spying on them. He adopted a subtle feeling of paranoia around them. When they spoke, he gave the usual pleasantries, but both of them, but Reiner in particular, could tell when someone was paying attention. It lie in the subtle ways they tilted their head, their careful posture.

Armin got up from where his friends were seated, and began walking up the steps. Eren followed him closely. "You said something once," he said, "that I never forgot. You said, you found something you were looking for. What was it?"

"I didn't tell you because I wanted to make sure it was real first," Armin answered. "I guess you need to know."

"Know what?" Mikasa replied.

Armin leaned against a building wall. "I discovered how I got to the Earth."

Eren's mouth hung open. "What?"

"Nobody came across it because it was buried in the ground," Armin explained. "A small vehicle made of metal that…" He searched for words his friends would understand "…had my father's memories in them."

Both Mikasa and Eren looked at him oddly. "His memories?" Eren asked.

"A diary of some kind? A letter?" Mikasa asked.

Armin shook his head. It would be difficult to explain. "No," he corrected. "My people were advanced enough that he could copy his mind. I was able to actually speak to _him_."

"N…No way!" Eren exclaimed. "Is that even possible?"

"So," Mikasa searched for meaning while she spoke, "you spoke to his ghost, in a sense?"

Armin nodded. "That's a good way of putting it."

"So," Mikasa asked, "what did he tell you?"

Armin used his senses and looked around. "Let's go somewhere where nobody might walk in on us talking," he warned. They followed him down the street a ways and he found an open area where it would be difficult for someone to remain hidden and still be in earshot. He regaled them with the story of the Planet Krypton, a huge world orbiting a sun very different than the one in the afternoon sky of Earth.

"They discovered their star was dying," he said. "It ran out of fuel and would explode, taking their planet with it. My father and his brother decided letting their legacy die with the world wasn't something they could tolerate, so they built vessels to save my cousin and myself from death."

Neither knew what to say at first. The thought of an entire world deep in the blackness of space struck them as so much absurdity. Yet, nonetheless, neither could explain the fact that their friend could do things that none of them had ever seen a human do. If Armin wasn't human, but something similar in appearance, it would, at least, make a puzzle piece make sense.

They listened to him describe the things his father told him. After what seemed like an eternity, he came to the end of the tale, and it was nearing time to turn in. Armin began to walk in the direction of their military quarters. "So, that's what I know," he said.

Eren and Mikasa had their questions, but the night moon hung overhead, and neither would be able to process the information overload much longer if they didn't sleep. The temporary quarters proved to be much more comfortable than the barracks of old, during the training, so when Armin changed into his evening clothes and tucked in for bed, he found no trouble tuning out and entering a dream-like state.

Armin awoke, followed his usual routine of putting on his uniform and brushing his hair into shape with his hands. Sliding on his boots, he stepped out of the barracks and into the sunlight. As always, his sleepiness evaporated when the light touched his flesh. The conversations he'd had with his father taught him the sun gave him his powers. Through a vaguely described notion Zor-El referred to as the "photonucleic effect," his body's smallest components converted the solar radiation into enormous amounts of energy. It enabled him to punch through stone and resist damage from heavy impacts, such as a titan trying to bite through him. It also had other side effects. He ate food like everyone else, but lately, he'd stopped feeling hungry and thirsty altogether.

Eren and Mikasa waited outside. The Survey Corps leaders, Commander Erwin and Captain Levi, were returning from their latest expedition. Armin scanned his eyes across the crowd, seeing some familiar faces. Thomas Wagner and some of the others were talking to Eren. Armin noticed he didn't see Bertolt or Reiner. He considered using his see-through vision to find them, but didn't want to violate everyone's privacy. Mentally, he chastised himself for his paranoia.

A familiar figure approached. All three smiled. "Hannes!" Eren announced. Armin turned, and waved.

"Nice to see you again," Armin said.

"I've made the rank of captain," Hannes said. "Meanwhile, Grisha Yeager's son made it."

"Congratulations," Eren said.

"I owe your father a debt," Hannes continued. "He saved my wife from disease."

"Commander Erwin!" Someone from the crowd shouted. "Give those titans hell!"

Another pointed at Levi. "That's Captain Levi!" He announced. "They say he's as strong as a dozen men!"

"This is nothing like five years ago," Eren exclaimed.

"Everyone's gotten a bit cheerier since then," Hanna said, chiming in from behind Eren. "Nothing's happened in five years."

Armin said nothing as he turned slightly away from her and looked somewhat pleased at the group. Levi had an expression of disgust on his face at the gawking crowd, and Armin could imagine he understood, even if he hadn't the same frame of reference. Franz stood behind Hanna and decided to add his two cents.

"They've upgraded the cannons as well," he explained. "I don't think the Colossal Titan will show up again."

Eren shot around to look at them like someone had slapped him. "That's a load of absolute crap and you know it!" He shouted, fists clenched. "Keep that nonsense to yourselves, you idiotic couple!"

Hanna could have combusted from embarrassment. "Us, a m-m-married couple?" she shrieked, shielding her face in her arm.

"You're getting ahead of yourself, Eren!" Franz added, throwing his arm in front of his eyes.

Hannes decided to interrupt, tapping on Eren's shoulder. "That day," he asked, "I hadn't the courage to ask, but how did you get the roof off your mother?"

"I don't know myself," Armin said, injecting himself into the conversation. "Honestly, I think it was a mixture of the right leverage and, well, the heat of the moment."

Hannes looked suspiciously at them a moment, then shrugged and accepted it. "Fine, I suppose that makes sense," he said. "How's your mother and father?"

Eren took a deep breath. "Mom's fine, living in the house we built for her," he explained. "There hasn't been a titan nearby for years now. She still has to walk slowly, and with a limp. Dad? I don't have a clue where he's gone."

Hannes looked at the ground. "I wish I knew," he said. "If only I had more answers."

"You did what you could," Armin said.

Eren knew he had a place to be, so he took off running. There would be plenty of time for reminiscing later, if everyone came back alive. Armin gave Hannes a hug, then followed Eren.

Atop the wall, Eren took the long pole and began probing the inside of the cannon to remove loose dust and debris. He saw that Connie Springer had the Scout Regiment symbol on his jacket. "Connie!" he said. "I thought you were joining the military police!"

"Looks like your speech earlier got to him!" Mina said, approaching from the other direction. "You too, Armin."

Eren looked over at Armin, standing near him. Thomas and others had approached, with Sasha Braus coming up fast from the rear. "Hey, guys!" she announced. "I stole some meat from the officers' storehouse!"

To this, everyone reacted with horror. "You're crazy!" Jackson said.

"Do you _want_ to get court-martialed?" Thomas added.

"Hey, just think," Sasha said, ignoring them, hiding it in a wooden box, "we can later share it, cutting it into slices and serving it with bread!" At the thought of this, she began to utter a guttural, laugh-like noise and quiver back and forth.

Jackson was the first to speak up. "You know, I'd like some!"

Wagner agreed. "I'd like some as well," Connie said.

"You guys, what's wrong with you?" Eren said.

Jackson picked up a pole and began brushing out a cannon. "What's with you, Eren?" he asked. "We'll get discovered if we don't get working!"

"Lunch isn't for a while," Mina said, walking off.

Eren stood back, gazing around, staring down at the elaborate anti-titan traps set around the entrance, the array of brand-new cannons, and smiled. _It's not like five years ago_ , he thought. _We're not the weaklings we were._

 _We can win!_

Boom.

The air exploded with a burst of yellow and white lightning. A gigantic gust of steam plumed out as a figure emerged from the haze.

The Colossal Titan stared over the wall. The cadets all stood frozen, staring in disbelief. One individual fell to his knees. He couldn't believe what he saw.

Armin used his see-through vision.

He saw Bertolt Hoover, connected to the musculature of the inside of the neck of the huge creature.

For a long instant, he found himself scarcely able to think. When his mind opened up, a single thought came to him.

Why?

The question plagued Armin. A sound of thunder startled him out of his stupor of confusion and betrayal. He clenched his fists. The gate had been broken open by the titan's foot. He pressed himself to his feet as he saw a giant hand reaching to sweep the cannons off the wall. A burst of wind from the titan blasted all the cadets off the wall except for him. The fact that he stood firm in the tempest caught Bertolt's giant gaze. Armin opened his mouth in a teeth-clenched glare. His feet firm, he pressed off to a leap with such force that a strong vibration passed through the wall.

Armin's right fist slammed into a section of the massive upper chest of the Colossal Titan. A five-foot circle of flesh exploded in a cloud of gore as the huge creature shot backwards with tremendous force. For almost thirty meters did the creature slide backwards, uprooting trees like toothpicks and digging a large trench. Armin flew down and forward like a cannon blast, directly at the head of the beast. In his single-mindedness, he failed to change course in time, and a colossal backhand launched him sideways through a series of trees to land in a dirt pile with a rumble. He threw himself into flight with such tenacity that he flattened an arc-shaped section of forest with his wake.

A giant puff of smoke later saw the titan vanish. Armin activated his see-through vision at once, and through the cloud, he made out the figure of Bertolt, running, scrambling for his life, in any direction he could. Armin landed and sprinted. As he took to his feet, time seemed frozen at the speed he dashed. Before Bertolt had time to register the dumb look on his face, Armin stood before him, having, as far as Bertolt could tell, suddenly popped into being in front of him.

A tight grip around Bertolt's neck enabled Armin to spin him around and plant him on the dirt. The dark-haired young man looked up at the angry, fair-haired boy and saw the look of death. He twitched his hand as he tried to shift, but the moment a finger moved, Armin tightened the vice-like hold.

"You so much as try to turn," Armin yelled, "and I'll rip your fucking face off!"

Bertolt went to speak, but it came out as a gurgle. Armin tilted an ear in the direction, loosened the grip. "What?"

"Look at me!" Bertolt shouted.

"What?" Armin said. Before he could complete a sentence, he heard booming footsteps behind him. He turned his head just in time to see a massive armored foot collide with his body.

The Armored Titan punted Armin off Bertolt like a child kicking a toy ball. Armin tumbled head over foot as he soared through the sky in an inadvertent arc. Summoning his flying force, he righted himself in midair, staring down at the Armored Titan, kneeling near Bertolt. Using both the ability to see through things and see far, Armin made the next horrifying discovery of the day.

Reiner Braun was the Armored Titan.

He blasted forward, colliding with the Armored Titan and knocking him backward. With a bit of effort, he wriggled underneath the plated bastard, and pushed him over onto his chest. Armin dug his fingers into the thick armor plated over the nape and ripped a plate clean off, tearing chunks of meat and blood spraying everywhere. He lifted his arm and prepared to drive it through Reiner's body, before a gigantic hand wrapped itself completely around Armin's body and began to squeeze.

The mighty hand pressed Armin down. He shouted obscenities as he jiggled back and forth until he had his feet pressed against the palm for leverage, and braced his arms against the fingers. His anger boiled over. Burning heat gathered at the back of his eyes. He opened his eyelids as wide as he could and let the rage flow.

A massive heat beam arc forty-five degrees wide exploded outward, turning Bertolt's hand into a thin vapor. He turned around mid-air and flew straight through the Colossal Titan, tearing the traitor out with one smooth motion. The giant body disintegrated in seconds. He dropped the young man. Reiner rushed forward, making a diving leap. Unfortunately, Bertolt hit the ground before his ally could get too close.

Reiner clamored forward, his Armored body stumbling and growling. Bertolt was alive. His back and neck were broken, along with one of his legs bent a bit in the wrong direction, but he breathed. Reiner quickly looked around before shouting in agony as the last plate covering his neck came off. A strong grip grabbed the body of Reiner inside the titan body, yanked him out, and lobbed him. Reiner landed in a roll, shattering both legs instantly, shattering an arm into powder, and giving him a nasty case of whiplash. Both were screaming in pain. Neither would be transforming again for a while.

Armin grabbed Bertolt by the leg and began to drag him to where Reiner was. Each motion brought a blood-curdling screech of pain. He laid them side by side, face up in the dirt. He knelt and stared at them. "Talk, or I'm going to kill the both of you right now," he said. His eyes glowed a fiery red.

The click of dozens of rifles caught Armin's attention.

He stood up, and turned around. Commander Erwin and Captain Levi stood in between two rows of scouts and soldiers, rifles loaded and aimed at Armin. Erwin closed his eyes a moment, inhaled, and let it out. "I need an explanation out of you," he said, dead-eyed serious.

Armin motioned behind him. "These men are traitors!" he said. "This is the Colossal Titan, and the Armored Titan!"

A collective gasp escaped from the ones who hadn't seen the whole thing clearly, such as Connie or Eren, who were too busy making sure their friends were safe. Eren looked as though he had turned to stone. Connie and Jean were beside themselves.

Erwin looked at the two, their breaths ragged and intermingled with the occasional shout of pain. His gaze returned to Armin. "What about you," he said, his tone confused and angry. "What are you?"

Armin looked away from Erwin at the sound of booming footsteps, and saw a group of scores of titans approaching of various sizes. "Commander, sir," he replied, "do you think you could let me explain in a minute or so?"

Erwin considered it. "Do whatever you can," he advised Armin, "but I want an answer."

Armin flew straight upwards about ten meters, so he could see all the titans in his vision that were approaching. Opening his eyes wide, he unleashed a conical beam of pure heat, melting titans by the score, moving his gaze upward until all of them were gone. He waited a few minutes, to make sure no more would emerge from the forest.

With a reprieve from external attack, Armin landed and approached a safe distance from Erwin. "You may not believe me," Armin said. "I was hoping to keep this a secret, honestly, but my anger got the better of me." He looked up at his commander. "I'm not from this world."

Erwin cocked his head to the side. "Excuse me, what?"

Armin folded his hands behind his back, and swallowed. "Beyond this world, deep in the night sky, there are other worlds like this Earth, with stars like our sun," he explained. "I'm from a world far from this one."

Levi barked out a laugh at the childish absurdity.

Erwin asked an obvious question. "Then why are you here?"

Armin sighed. "My world is dead," he said. Quiet discussions rose among the others. "And so, I was sent here, to survive."

Levi stepped forward. "You don't believe this crap, do you?"

Erwin looked at his trusted officer, then back at Armin. "After what I just saw," he told him, "I don't know what I believe anymore." He blinked a long blink. "Here's what I do know: regardless of the impossibility of Arlert here doing what we just saw, he saved us."

Levi looked behind him. "He might have killed the titans drawn by the attack," he warned his superior, "but what do we do about that hole in the gate?"

"I can keep watch," Armin said. "I don't need to sleep."

"No," Erwin replied. "We need you to keep an eye on these two." He looked behind at the two lying on the ground. "What's going on with them?"

"They're…titan shifters," Armin replied.

Erwin let out a sigh. "Ok, what?"

"There apparently are people that can turn into titans," he explained to the commander. "For all we know, all the titans could have been people at some point."

"You think you can hold us?" Reiner shouted. "We're both going to heal, so you'd best kill us now, or we're going to keep going until we kill you demon scum!"

Armin knelt and clamped a right hand on Reiner's throat. "You know, I might just take you up on that!" He shouted. "If you want to live, talk!"

"I have no idea what I just saw a few minutes ago," Levi said, folding his arms, "but if long-hair over here can do more of that, I don't think there's shit you can do against him. If you want to live, we need to know what's going on."

Erwin stepped forward, picking up on Levi's gambit. "Somehow, I don't think this is the work of you two alone," he said. "Neither of you strike me as the mastermind type."

"Alright," Bertolt said, gravel in his voice. "Since our only way out is death, I'll talk."

"Bertolt!" Reiner shouted.

"They're going to kill us anyway," Bertolt replied. "That's what their kind does."

"You think it's funny?" Levi chimed in, standing over the tall young man. "Do you have any idea how many lives you're directly responsible for ending?"

"Bertolt!" Reiner continued. "Shut up already!"

"Look at them, Reiner," Bertolt implored. "They really don't know."

Armin looked down at the source of much of humanity's grief. His eyes began to glow red. "If you want to live past tonight, you'll start talking," he explained.

"You want to know about Ymir, and the horror you Eldians caused?"

Erwin and Levi exchanged a questioning glance. "What the hell is an Eldian?" Erwin asked.

Bertolt explained the story as told to him by countless others who came before. How the woman known as Ymir acquired the power of the Titans, and it was only through the power of will and perseverance that the Marleyans managed to survive. The threat that the island of Paradis—yes, they were on an island—held the last major obstacle between peace and prosperity for all. It turned everyone's stomach hearing the twisted words of how the Eldians threatened the safety of everyone in the world, and of their blood descended from demons.

"You might have gotten us," Bertolt concluded, "but rest assured, soon enough, your lot will be destroyed, and the world will be saved."

Levi placed his boot on Bertolt's chest. "That's a hell of a story you got there," he said. "Looking at you, I think you're too dumb to make up something like that."

"You know what this means, right?" Erwin said to Levi.

"Something's rotten at the very top," Levi said.

Armin forcefully halted his rapid breathing. He closed his eyes and held them a moment, opening them slowly. The look he gave Bertolt could stop a weaker man's heart. "All I know," Armin said, "is that thousands are dead because of the two of you. You claim that these 'Eldians' that you say we are, spent the longest time trying to wipe out the 'Marleyans' and that you have to stop us? Does that make sense?"

"Don't try to convince…!" Bertolt began, but Armin drew his gaze closer, silencing him instantly.

"After such an incredible amount of time," he explained, "and such power they had as the titans, how did they not just wipe all the Marleyans out?"

Erwin looked at Levi. Levi approached the two on the ground. "Bertolt, Reiner," Levi said, an exasperated expression to his words and face, "here's the only story you need to know. You're probably going to be executed. The only question is whether or not you'll be put to death by a squad, or by one of us for trying to escape."

"Killing us won't put an end to your problems," Bertolt continued.

"For the love of…!" Reiner shouted.

Erwin pointed a rifle at Reiner's forehead. "Why can't you just let the man speak?"

Bertolt's face adopted a grin. "Once we die, the Colossal Titan and the Armored Titan will return to Marley," he explained.

"If we aren't destined to get the Founding Titan," Reiner added, "one of our brethren will! Even if they have to kill everyone on this island!"

Bertolt shot a look at his partner. "Damn it, Reiner!"

Reiner shut his mouth, embarrassed, a second too late. Levi smiled and pointed his sword. "Oops, looks like someone's said too much," he said.

"Now we know the Founding Titan is here somewhere," Armin said.

Levi shook his head. "Hasn't this day just been a learning experience?" he asked, sarcastically.

Way behind, in the back of the group of bewildered soldiers, stood Annie Leonheart. She'd seen Bertolt and Reiner appear as the Colossal and Armored Titan, but had decided not to transform herself. Shortly after the gate blasted open, Bertolt vanished behind the wall. She couldn't imagine what could have caused that. Eagerly, she ran out through the entrance to get a better look, and instantly felt like she'd gone insane. The two mightiest people she knew, were taken down by a single person. Moreover, this person, was _flying_ unassisted. There were no buts about it. She risked a closer look, and moved forward a couple of feet at a time. Her heart beating so hard, she wondered if she would simply collapse at any moment. A single person had the strength to punch a titan to the ground. The idea struck her as so outlandish and crazy, that she slapped herself several times to make sure this was not a dream.

Once she got close enough to see that the single person managed to turn the tide rapidly and completely against the two titans, her jaw almost dropped. She actually quit breathing for a second or two. It was Armin.

Armin Arlert, the sandy-haired boy who usually kept to himself, soared around, moved titans by force, and managed to get the best of his enemies. More than once, she saw him rip the two straight _out_ of their titans. So many questions swam through her head. Surely, if anyone else had this power, they'd have shown themselves. Why hadn't he shown them before? What else did she not know? One thing she knew for absolute certain—she wasn't going to fight him with his level of power.

Erwin got Reiner and Bertolt tied up with Levi's help and with Armin watching both like a hawk. Levi leaned in close to the duo's ears. "Do me and also you a favor by _not_ turning into Titans," he advised the two of them. "I think Armin here might just finish the job." He gave a deathly glare. "It's not like I can stop him."

The military police showed up shortly thereafter. Nile Dawk himself, commander of the military police, showed up with several groups of officers, each armed with rifles and pistols. "Commander Erwin Smith!" he ordered, standing with hands folded. "We saw the Colossal Titan appear then disappear! Report!"

Erwin closed his eyes a moment to avoid his ally seeing him roll them. This inevitable outcome he dreaded, even though he knew it would come. "Based on everything we know," he explained, "the Colossal and Armored Titans appeared, then Arlert here fought them and won." He waited for the laughter or cries of disbelief. Only a few of the murmurs were it.

"I happened to see some of it," Nile replied, "and I still don't believe it. Is that utter absurdity the truth?"

Armin decided he had enough. If his secret would be out of the bag, let it be so. He lifted off the ground and floated upwards several feet, high enough to see almost the entire crowd. For effect, he did a wide circle and touched back down.

All voices went silent. Levi, the one who seemed the most skeptical to begin with, simply folded his arms and gave a stone-face. "That prove it?" he quipped.

Nile Dawk swallowed hard, beads of sweat forming on his brow. He'd actually been hoping the whole thing was some strange hallucination. "So," he finally said, "These two are the traitors?"

Erwin nodded. "We've managed to capture them."

"How the hell do we keep them from waiting until we're asleep and transforming?" Dawk asked, urgency and panic in his voice.

"They're no match for me," Armin countered, "and I don't have to sleep."

"Oh! You _don't_?" Dawk said, sarcastically. "Isn't that dandy? I don't know which is worse! We've got a single guy who can kill the most powerful titans we've ever seen all by himself, or that two of our own were the traitors all along!"

"There's a lot more to this than even we were lead to believe," Erwin explained. "After you hear what we got out of them, you're going to want to sit down."

This time, Levi explained what Reiner and Bertolt had said. It took him a good fifteen minutes to explain it, and even then, he had to turn to Erwin and Armin more than a few times for corrections on things he'd heard. A few times, laughter bubbled up and he shut it down, finding it hard for even himself to believe some of it. At least once or twice, Dawk nearly fell over, and his fellow officers had to correct his balance.

After the story concluded, the two groups headed back in the direction of military headquarters. To each commander, this would require the attention of Dhalis Zachary, the head of all of the military subordinate to the king. The two traitors exchanged glances. This would likely be among the last times they saw each other alive, and neither would be seeing Marley again. What neither understood, was why Armin hadn't simply killed them. It would have saved time.

The group led the traitors to a prison outside the city. Apparently, it hadn't been used in quite some time, as the dirt and dust irritated Levi to no end. The advantage of this place was that if the two decided to turn, Armin would have plenty of space to fight them in.

During this entire time, Eren simply looked at his friend in a mixture of amazement and disbelief. Here stood Erwin, Levi, and the chief of police. Armin stood near them as, if not an equal, at least a peer. They asked him questions without hesitation, and if he spoke, they listened. He had their attention and they had his. Not very long ago, he could scarcely have imagined Armin standing up for himself. Now, his friend had stepped into the limelight, and it made him feel slightly inferior. He welcomed the fact that his friend got noticed and taken seriously. At the same time, it bothered him just how little he could do. From the start, he couldn't even have saved his mother.

Armin followed them to the prison, watched them sit Reiner and Bertolt in separate cells, and sat a chair in between. Levi sat on a bench near the seat, and Erwin sat next to him. Armin took the chair, and Nile Dawk stood with several officers, arms folded. "Zachary will be over for the trial first thing tomorrow morning," he said. "We're not delaying this. Arlert, expect to give a full explanation of _your_ history and part in this as well."

He turned to the chief of police. "I'm not under arrest?" he asked.

Dawk shook his head. "Not yet," he replied. "Besides, you took them down, you keep watch over them. You might be the only one who can."

"Like we told you before," Bertolt said. "Killing us won't be the end! Marley will come and put an end to you monsters!"

Levi rolled his eyes. "Traitor," he shot back, "you're so full of shit, I can smell it over here. We'll deal with it as it comes."

An officer came up to Dawk and whispered in his ear. He turned to Erwin. "Two soldiers, claiming to be friends of Arlert wish to see him," he said.

Erwin raised his eyebrows. "Names?"

"Mikasa Ackerman and Eren Yeager," he said.

"Let them in!" Armin chimed in. "I grew up with them!"

Levi turned to Armin. "Can they do what you can do?" Armin shook his head. "I don't know if that's good or bad."

Eren and Mikasa came rushing in. "Armin!" Eren yelled, enthusiastically.

Mikasa threw her arms around her friend. "I thought you were going to lay low!"

Armin shook his head. "Seeing the wall break made me see red," he explained. "I guess I just couldn't handle it."

Levi let out a chuckle. "I love that you were thinking of hiding such a secret," he said. "Like you thought it would be possible to keep such a thing secret."

"You saw how scared all the soldiers were," Eren said, defending his friend. "He was worried that people wouldn't accept him."

"There's no turning back now," Armin said. "Now that we know the truth, we have bigger plans than the titans."

"There's this 'Marley' bullshit," Levi said, folding his arms. He looked at Bertolt and Reiner who were shooting him daggers with their eyes. "Yeah, you can look at me like that all you want, but it still doesn't change the fact that your story is utter horseshit, even if it is true."

Reiner sat stewing in his own anger. He knew his fits of rage would get the best of him one day, and he had to struggle to hold down his desire to shift. Everything he thought he knew had a wrench thrown in it. All their planning had been based on the idea that the worst these demonic Eldians had to offer, was their ability to turn into Titans. Instead, this…thing, this being known as Armin Arlert displayed power not only impossible for an Eldian, but impossible for _anyone_. It seemed as if a god of some mythology had descended to the world of men.

Erwin and Levi exchanged glances, then looked at Armin. "You gave us a brief idea," Erwin began, "but I think it's time you told us your story."

Armin looked at the traitors, then back at his commanders. "Do you really think they should hear this?"

"Nothing you've done strikes me as anything men could do," Levi countered. "I doubt there's any strategic importance to what you could say. If there is, I'm assuming you're smart enough to leave it out."

"There are worlds beyond this Earth," Armin began. "The sun is a star, and out there, far away from here, used to be a world known as Krypton. It orbited a star much bigger than our sun."

" _Used to be_ ," Levi noted.

"Krypton had technology so advanced, they had ships that could sail out into the night sky, into what we call _outer space_ ," Armin continued explaining. "But, in their arrogance, they failed to see the end of their world in time. Krypton was destroyed when their sun exploded." He hung his head a moment, taking in a breath. "My father, a man named Zor-El, and my uncle Jor-El, each built a ship capable of taking their sons to safety on another world." He looked up. "Earth was that world."

Erwin could picture it, with difficulty. Levi closed his eyes and imagined other Earths, with different looking people on them. "Ok," Levi interjected, "I think I can get it." He gestured with his hands. "Why did they choose Earth?"

Armin sat still a moment, gathering his words. "Because of a unique phenomenon called the 'Photonucleic Effect,'" he explained. "To put it in terms you'll understand, the absolute smallest parts of a Kryptonian's physiology, too small even to see with your eyes or a magnifying glass, when exposed to the radiation of a sun like _ours_ , as opposed to one like on Krypton, generate huge amounts of energy and allow for the powers I demonstrated earlier."

"So," Erwin cut in, "anyone of your, 'Kryptonian' people, would have the powers you have?"

Armin nodded. "But as far as I know, only my cousin Kal-El and myself survived."

"He was sent shortly after you," Levi said. "So where is he?"

Armin hung his head again. "I…don't have a clue."

"If there are many other worlds out there," Erwin asked, "I have to assume your father intended for something when he sent you here."

The fair-haired young man picked up on his commander's implied worry instantly. "My father intended for me to help humanity with my powers," Armin said, alleviating the worry ahead of time.

"Here's the important question," Levi cut in. "What powers do you have, exactly, and how do they work?"

He looked at the traitors again. How much of this should he say? Then again, he'd used most of them on these two. Turning back to Levi, he explained, "I have a bunch. Give me a minute." The seasoned warrior gave him a nod. "Okay, here's what I've got so far." He numerated with his fingers. "I can fly. I can move fast, incredibly fast. I am extremely durable; so far, nothing has been able to hurt me. I can shoot beams of heat out of my eyes and burn things. I am incredibly strong. I can hear quiet things."

"So," Bertolt piped in, startling everyone, "everything in this world is just another thing to you? No wonder you never showed any fear in training. You're beyond everything."

Armin clenched his fists. "My friends and the innocent people you've killed and planned on killing," he countered, "they matter to me. I hate to see people die. Ever wonder why the titan population in the inner walls of Wall Maria went down? I got tired of _hearing people scream_ as they got eaten by Titans."

"You think you're something important?" Reiner cut in. "Both Bertolt and me got sent out into war. We were trusted with the Armored Titan and Colossal Titan because there are enemies all around Marley who want her destroyed! We've had to fight since a young age, and we've seen our comrades die!"

"You say you have to atone for the sins of seventeen hundred years of ethnic cleansing?" Armin shouted. "Don't make me laugh! Ask yourself this: how does it make sense that a concerted effort to wipe the Earth clean of anyone who isn't an Eldian, didn't succeed?" He saw the two clench their teeth in anger. He also saw the gears begin to turn. "How did those without the power of titans even manage to compete? Does that make sense?"

"Don't try to talk sense into them," Levi said, wearing a smug expression. "They accepted a mission to kill people based on a folk tale."

"No!" Armin shouted. "It's bullshit! None of this makes any sense to me! I refuse to accept any ridiculous myths! There must be a truth somewhere. Nobody is perfectly good or evil." He paced around the room. "It's absurd that you two," he stood a foot from the cells, "grew up to be killers. Was the whole bit where you showed you cared, a fake lie?"

Bertolt clenched his teeth. Was it a lie? In his mind, he knew his mission had been expressly clear from the beginning. The only way to atone was to destroy the only remaining threat to peaceful Marleyan rule. On the other hand, the stories and feelings the cadets had shared, couldn't be ignored. He blinked to avoid the moisture escaping his eyes. "No," he admitted. "It wasn't a lie. Those times we laughed and shared, we weren't faking it."

Eren's fist tightened. "But, in the end, we're still demons you have to kill," he said. "So your wonderful Marleyan government can exist peacefully."

"Except," Levi cut in again, "in order to exist peacefully, they have to dominate all their enemies and destroy the ones that won't accept defeat." He cocked a half-sneer. "Makes sense."

"Maybe if all their enemies didn't want them dead," Reiner interjected. "Maybe then it wouldn't have to be this way."

"First," Armin said, sharply, "most of us here were under the impression the outside world had ended. Up until just a short while ago, nobody knew anything. Now, we know that not only are there foreign enemies who want us dead, somewhere up our own chain of command, there's those lying to us!"

"We'll get to the bottom of this," Erwin promised.

Armin nodded. "So, commander, what are we going to do about the trial? I don't think it's a smart idea to take these two into the city." He didn't break eye contact. Talking about them in the third-person sent a message. He wanted them to see his anger and his resolve.

"It's not my decision," Erwin admitted. "I'll take it up with Zachary and he'll tell us what to do."

Levi stood up, following Erwin. "Anyway, we have reports to give and a lot of crap to take from our superiors," he said to Armin. "You said you didn't have to sleep?"

"I don't get tired as long as I get sunlight," he repeated.

"I'm going to trust that nothing will happen," Erwin said.

"I can't guarantee that," Armin said, looking the traitors in the eye. "I'm only going to say that I plan on dealing with whatever happens."

Bertolt shut his eyes and opened them, a harsh and deliberate showing. Reiner sat with arms folded. Armin stood up and stretched, sitting back down and resting his hands in his lap. "You think we're just going to be calm and politely walk to our execution?" the black-haired traitor asked.

Armin shook his head. "That's for the court to decide," he replied. "If you resist, you'll have forced my hand."

"God has spoken," Reiner quipped, not making eye contact.

"You have killed people," Armin repeated, placing emphasis on the 'you have.' He wanted them to see. "You can pretend all you want but it doesn't change the fact that innocent people died."

"The evil government has to fall and the demon people have to die!" Bertolt shot back.

"The world can't be in peace until that happens."

"Why does an ethnic cleansing have to take place in order for peace to occur?" Armin folded his arms. "Doesn't that strike you as crazy? Doesn't that seem like someone is lying to you?"

"You can stop trying to change our minds," Reiner shot back.

"Fine," Armin exclaimed. He huffed and leaned back in his chair. "I'm going to stay here and make sure you don't do anything."

They sat in an uncomfortable silence for nearly a minute. After they exchanged angry glances a few times and the traitors shifted in their seats, all became aware of the painful, crawling pace of the flow of time. Armin, true to his part, did not get physically tired. The fact that he was the only one capable of monitoring the traitors bothered him. Eren's taking a subordinate role bothered him. Before these powers had taken hold, the sandy-haired boy expected to be backing up his more able-bodied friend. It seemed like a simple fact; Eren had a bravery and gumption, in those days, that he hadn't had. Heck, even Mikasa had been the bruiser of the trio. Now, though, he stepped outside of his mind and thought of his actions. He'd taken charge on more than one occasion. Levi and Erwin, two very important members of the military, didn't even notice Eren. Sure, his pig-headed friend, dead set on combat, ranked in the top ten, but all eyes were on a him—a youth, who, shortly ago, wouldn't have been given a second glance. Ultimately, he shook it off. Continuing to harp on these thoughts weren't productive.

"So," Reiner asked, "you've sided with these demons." He shook his head a bit. "All that power, and you choose the hateful people."

"I don't know these 'Marleyans,'" Armin countered. "I'm not interested in genocide. I don't plan on being a ruler or a conqueror. But I will do what I have to do to bring peace however I can." He leaned forward. "I assure you, for the mass murders you two have perpetrated, I will see you tried. What the court decides, is up to them."

Bertolt snorted a laugh. "So you think you can keep your hands clean forever?" He breathed hard. "Marley is coming to finish what we failed to finish. You're going to have to bloody your hands if you intend to keep these demons safe."

"You might laugh at this," Armin countered, "but I don't believe in either-or situations with only two options. I will find a way."

"Demons who only want to subjugate the world sharing the world with their victims?" Reiner argued. "I'd love to see your 'third option' that's going to save so many lives."

"You can be as sarcastic as you want," Armin said. "But I bet if you went over some of the things you were told, it'd strike you as utter nonsense."

"You're just trying to get us to betray…" Reiner began.

Armin interrupted him. "You think the government of the Eldians are liars who are manipulating the truth," he said. "So, is your government incapable of lying?"

"You're not going to get us to betray our cause," Bertolt said.

Armin believed him, at least to a slight degree. He could see in their eyes that a seed of doubt had been planted. Would it flower? He didn't know. Maybe they would go to their grave supporting Marley and this idea of genocide. He had no idea. But he'd made sure they would think about it. "Both Marleyans and Eldians have the right to exist peacefully," he said. "I'm sure both have committed atrocities. If the titans are such weapons of war as you've said, both sides are guilty for using them as such. But the truth of the matter is, I know, and I'm sure you know, the people you've spent time with don't deserve to die."

"We have to atone for the sins of our Eldian blood!"

Armin looked straight at Bertolt. "That's bullshit and you know it!" he shouted. "A son is not guilty for the sins of his father."

"We're not going to willingly march to the axe," Reiner explained. "You're going to have to kill us."

"That's unfortunate," Armin said. "I want you to live." He shrugged and leaned back in his chair. "But if that is true, I will do what is needed to save the lives of the innocent. I _will_ kill the both of you if I have to."

Both traitors looked at Armin, and read by the steady, open eyes, the absolute sincerity in his voice, and his firm conviction, that he genuinely would do as he said. It gave them a shiver. He leaned forward again, and met their gaze with full intensity.

"You may not believe me, but I'm racking my brain trying to think of a way to save your treasonous lives," he told them. "I'd advise you to make my job easier. The clock is ticking."

Bertolt barked out a laugh. "Why would you save us?"

"I came from beyond the Earth," Armin flatly stated.

Bertolt and Reiner chuckled a bit, not understanding. He gave them a moment. Dawning realization and horror gripped their faces as they began to understand.

Armin said their fear out loud anyway.

"Anything _else_ that comes from beyond this Earth, isn't going to notice or care about Eldians or Marleyans."


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

The next morning, members of the military police marched in to collect the two traitors. Much to their surprise—and the surprise of leaders of the scout regiment—they managed to interrupt a conversation between Armin and the two. The beds looked disturbed, as if the prisoners had fallen asleep and woken up. An uneventful night pleased all those present, and none were as pleased or as baffled as Erwin Smith and Levi Ackerman.

"Anything happen?" A police captain said to Armin.

The fair-haired youth shook his head. "No," he said. "We got along just fine." His voice lacked aggression, anger, or even dismay. Only a few picked up on this, but each had a different notion of what it meant.

Bertolt Hoover stood up, approaching the bars. His face looked slightly red from crying. Reiner Braun had nothing of the sort, but still, he looked as if he pondered something that tore at his very nature. Armin stood up and at attention. Unlike the two prisoners, he looked the very image of composure and attentiveness.

The military police approached, unlocked the cells, and took each traitor in shackles, leading them on. They offered no resistance, and Armin followed close behind. As the group exited the prison into the open air, a dozen men on each side took aim with rifles and followed at a close distance, just outside of immediate reach. Levi approached, and to Arin's surprise, Eren and Mikasa did as well.

"So, tell me what happened," Levi asked.

"We talked until the sun went down," Armin said. "They fell asleep at some point. I was awake the whole time." He thought about it. "I kept my ears open in case titans approached the gate. They did a few times and I took care of it."

The last bit struck Levi and he turned his head sharply. "You weren't worried about them using that opening?"

"As fast as I am," he explained to the officer, "it wouldn't have mattered."

Eren whistled. "I keep being reminded of how amazing you are," he noticed.

"Don't become my salesman just yet," Armin joked.

The group marched along, following a path through the open field and into the woods, following a path until they got to a large fortress.

"This used to be the old headquarters of the scout regiment," Erwin explained, "but it was too far out of the way."

Dhalis Zachary stepped out of the front entrance and waited as military police surrounded him on two sides. The guards and bailiffs noticed the prisoners and stood firm with hands on guns. One of the officials approached the group leading the prisoners to talk to the police captain. "Armin Arlert!" the officer explained. "You will join the two traitors as this trial involves you as well!"

Eren went off. "That's absurd! If it wasn't for Armin, thousands would be dead!"

"Let it go," Armin said, shooting a glance at his friend. The look showed that he saw this turn of events coming.

The officer placed a pair of cuffs on the fair-haired youth. "You will not resist, if you want to be treated fairly!"

"Come on!" Eren continued to protest. "You should know those won't matter!"

"If it makes them feel safer," Armin countered. "If I resisted, it wouldn't look very good, would it?"

Eren took notice and quit protesting. He left, joining Mikasa in the audience. A number of people from the priesthood, as well as the general population, had made the journey from Trost to see the most incredible trial of their lives. The two titans that had caused such enormous strife and misery had not only been caught, but would be tried and, more than likely, executed.

Armin and the two prisoners were escorted into the center of a large room. Two men with rifles trained stood behind each person. Normally, they would be shackled to posts and forced to kneel, but this was not the normal courthouse. Both Bertolt and Reiner looked, surprisingly, remorseful and completely different than when any of those present the day before at the battle had seen them. Their utter defiance and steadfastness were gone. From Armin's perspective, having talked to them, a miracle had occurred.

"We will begin this trial," Zachary said. Slamming his hand on the table. "Bertolt Hoover, Reiner Braun, you two are the Colossal Titan, and the Armored Titan, respectively. Correct?" They agreed. "So, do you admit to the crimes accused of you?"

"We broke the outer Wall Maria at Shiganshina," Reiner confessed, "and breached the Trost wall with intent to cause mass murder. Yes."

Zachary laughed through his nose. "So, you've freely offered no defense against charges that will get you executed?"

"Yes," Bertolt offered.

"In that case," Zachary asked, "what are you willing to offer?"

"We've nothing to offer," Bertolt admitted.

"Kill him!" a priest of the wall cult shouted. "execute this traitor!" The crowd quickly began to swell with similar cries.

"Enough!" Zachary shouted, banging his hand on the counter. He turned his attention towards the two. "Tell your story aloud."

Bertolt looked at Reiner, then back to Zachary. He gave a ten-minute lecture on the nature of Marley and Eldia as he knew, as he had been taught from a young age. What caused an abrupt gasp from most of the audience, was when he mentioned the fact that Eldians were second-class citizens in Marley-controlled territory, as their dangerous blood made them both useful soldiers in battle and lethal potential foes. He described the group known as the Warriors. A number of times, his lecture got interrupted by some expletive shouted from the audience, or loud boos, which caught the ire and angry shout of Dhalis Zachary, who, despite his burgeoning anger, kept a calm face.

Upon finishing his lecture, the two hung their heads and stared at the ground. Zachary had to unclench his teeth with effort. Having read the report of what the two had said, and hearing them talk about it struck him very differently. It took a lot of will to remember that his job was to pronounce a formal decision impartially. The clear choice, with no exception, was execution. Yet, he saw the third prisoner—the person who, without hesitation, could be described as having saved humanity—standing firm and straight-faced, ready for anything, and suddenly didn't feel so sure.

"Arlert," Zachary said, "you have told your story to Erwin Smith and Levi Ackerman, as well as others. Please tell your story to the court."

Armin explained, with careful effort, so as not to confuse anyone, how life existed beyond the night sky and into the stars. He explained how the stars were suns and other life-giving planets similar to Earth existed around some of them. The tale of Krypton and how its people failed to adequately predict its end brought about the populace's extinction. He explained some of the amazing things they were capable of. Some of the things he told them brought greater shock than anything Bertolt had said. None of them knew how to react when he spoke of the powers he possessed or how the yellow sun of Earth endowed him with such.

"Devil!" A cry came from the audience. Before either Zachary or any of the soldiers could react, the man drew a pistol from within his coat and fired a single shot at Armin. The bullet impacted his right cheek and crumpled instantly, harmlessly falling to the floor.

The silence that followed the incredible sight came like a thunderclap. Eyes jolted from the man to Armin's unblemished skin and back. Most in the audience expected the assailant to be destroyed immediately. It did not occur. Armin used the moment to draw his attention back to the judge to make a point.

"Your honor!" Armin said, breaking the silence. Zachary snapped his attention back as if slapped.

"Yes, Arlert?" he asked.

"I would like to make a possible issue known to the court," he said. "I am from beyond this world. I have powers vastly superior to anything any military on the Earth has to offer." He brought his shackled hands up to face level, a pseudo-boxing stance, and snapped the metal chain between them like a small twig. "If I had actually wanted, I could have enslaved or murdered everyone on this planet, and not worried at all about being harmed." He broke the lock mechanism with a flick of each thumb and tossed the destroyed shackles to the bailiff. "I've had these powers for about five years now. I am responsible for the titan population within Wall Maria going way down. In fact," he paused to take a breath, "I even took the liberty of sealing Wall Maria."

The display had shocked all, even the priests, into complete silence and attention. None of the others drew their guns. None of the soldiers dared move. Armin had made a single statement with as little effort as possible. He looked around, then back at Zachary. "What is your point?" The judge said.

"If anything comes from space," Armin explained, meticulously as he could, "that can get through me, it won't hesitate. I might be your only hope. Believe it or not, I _want_ to protect humanity. But I can't do that unless we work together." Abruptly he turned to the traitors. "Bertolt! Tell them what you told me."

Bertolt took a deep breath and looked around. Reiner nodded, giving him confidence. He closed his eyes and silently mouthed a short prayer. "The history of this island is more dangerous than you think," he began. "Around a century ago, the hundred and forty-fifth king used the power of the coordinate to create the walls out of hardening the bodies of all the giant titans that were on this island."

"Lies! Blasphemy! Heresy!" A priest bellowed.

"Silence!" Zachary shouted.

"Silence this heretic at once!" the priest continued.

Armin clapped his hands. The force of the sharp bang instantly brought hands to ears. A few screams resounded. The priest fell silent as the young man's intense gaze fell on him.

"The reason you all were convinced the world outside the walls had ended and the titans had consumed everyone," Bertolt continued, "is that the particular king had used his power to erase everyone's memory."

Zachary's expression darkened at that. The idea that the king had lied to not only him, but the entire line had lied to everyone, from such a long time ago, boggled his mind as well as drew his anger.

"We've all been lied to," Armin said. "All of our strife, as well as the struggles between Eldians and Marleyans, comes down to a blood feud based on myths that everyone, regardless of side, probably has completely wrong."

"What do you propose we do next?" Zachary said, curious as to where Armin was going with this.

"Regardless of whether we put these two to death or not, they're not going to live much longer," Armin explained. "Marley is wrong, but they're people just like you." He cleared his throat. "If the human race is going to survive, at some point, what's left of us is going to have to sit down and talk with Marley about the future."

Zachary clasped his hands together, taking ragged breaths and letting them out. "Be careful," he said. "You've already revealed information that could be taken the wrong way. Don't overstep your bounds."

Armin sighed, stepping back. He blinked several times. "I'm sorry, sir," he said. "I'm just saying what I feel."

Zachary looked from Armin to the traitors. "Tell me," he inquired, "what do _you_ feel?"

Bertolt closed his eyes a long moment. "I don't really know," he admitted. "I'm not convinced you people _aren't_ demons, but I'm not sure our side is completely right anymore. It _doesn't_ make sense that one side is completely evil and the other completely good."

"That may be," Zachary agreed. "Still, the fact of the matter is, you are both murderers. I think you two should be executed. Still, I feel like we can talk about the dream of peace all we want, but there's no way that can simply come about." He raised his hand, mimicking a gavel. "I hereby sentence you two…"

"There's more than the two of us," Reiner burst out with. Bertolt snapped his head around, surprised, but the look that his partner gave him silenced him before he could speak.

"What do you mean?"

Reiner looked up at the judge. "One of the other titans, the Beast Titan, is part of our mission group," he explained. "Eren Yeager's father, Grisha, had a family back in Marley. His first son, Zeke, is the Beast Titan." A collective gasp escaped the crowd. Eren sat, mouth hanging open, struck dumb. "In fact, he was supposed to be our group leader, there to make sure we completed our mission."

"Are there any other members we should know about?"

Zachary's question caused a noticeable shudder between the two traitors. Bertolt and Reiner exchanged glances. Bertolt quietly mouthed, "I'm sorry."

"Annie Leonheart," Reiner said.

The surprise elicited an audible shout from several members of the Survey Corps. Armin shot out of his focused state and stared bewildered at the two traitors. Neither of them had told him such an important piece of information. His gaze swept the room. In a second, he found her, standing just outside the base, behind an outcropping. She was watching through one of the side windows to the room they were in. When Armin's eyes landed on her, she pulled her thumb to her mouth, and bit down.

"Dammit!" Armin shouted, breaking from his position.

A burst of steam revealed her titan form: a skinless female titan. Armin emerged from the room a moment after she transformed. He had to prevent her from killing any innocents. Inside the courtroom, pandemonium reigned, with people having to be kept from stampeding by soldiers drawing weapons. Bertolt and Reiner exchanged glances, but recalled their battle with Armin. Even if they joined Annie, there'd be no chance of victory. If their combined efforts couldn't hurt him, one more wouldn't matter. Reiner's confession was a test of trust.

Outside, Annie swung a fist at Armin, who dodged almost effortlessly. He became a battering ram, slamming two extended fists into her titan's collarbone. Her enormous frame launched backward, slamming to the ground. He flew to her side and pushed his way underneath her. Grasping the flesh by the lower back, he lifted her entire frame into the sky high above the castle. A swift punch created a tear in her skin through which liquid flowed out. With a firm grip by both hands, he ripped her titan form in two, dropping the legs harmlessly to the woods near the castle. Her upper body landed face down on the ground nearby. A landing on the upper back, and he used his heat vision to cut a circle of flesh out of her titan form. He reached his right hand into the flesh and extricated her by the waist from the disintegrating giant.

Steam and chunks of disintegrating flesh fell off her. She gritted her teeth in anger. He held up a hand. "Don't transform again," he warned her, his eyes glowing red. "Why did you do that? You had to know you couldn't win."

"I had to see if I had gone crazy, or if my eyes were true," she said. A defeated smile came to her. "I was right. God has descended from heaven." Tears fell from her eyes. "Where were you when we were rounded up?"

"I'm not God," Armin said. "And you're not going to kill anyone else."

She wiped her eyes. "I just wanted to complete the mission so we could go home."

Armin cleared his throat. He closed his eyes a moment. What more could be done? What was the right thing to do? "You know what, Annie? You're going home. I will make sure of it."

Soldiers gathered outside the court. "Armin Arlert! What is going on?"

Armin held up his hand. The soldiers stood silent as he collected his thoughts. Annie stepped back a few steps. "These traitors," he began, "these soldiers of Marley, have been fed a load of crap since they were infants." He spoke with a clear cadence and he straightened his back posture. If they were going to stand in fear or reverence of him, he would use it to his advantage. Zachary was joining the group as riflemen dragged the accused out to keep them in view. Bertolt and Reiner stared at Annie. She gave them a defeated look.

"Thousands are dead because of them!" Zachary protested.

"If you kill them," Armin replied, "then we run the risk of giving the titans they wield back to Marley. I've been told they'll die in a few years anyway; a titan shifter apparently only lives thirteen years or so from the moment they gain the power."

Zachary secretly clenched his teeth; this Arlert had become irritating, even if he was right. "So, you're suggesting letting them off the hook?"

"They could live to be a hundred," he shot back, "and they'd never be able to forget what they've done. They deserve to die, and they know it. Let us prove that we're the better men."

A new figure, military strategist Dot Pixis approached. "Sir," he said to Zachary, "when Marley comes here for war, they won't stand a chance against Armin." He looked over to the sandy-haired youth for approval, who nodded. "If we can end war with minimal casualties, wouldn't it make the enemy more likely to agree if we give them their agents back alive?"

"Be realistic!" Zachary protested. "This Marley government is more likely to want our extermination!" He looked at the traitors. "Besides, these two are likely to be killed by their own people for failure!"

"Then we'll have fulfilled our end of the deal by giving them back alive," Armin said. "We have to show them that everyone has a right to life, no matter who they are. If they want to take the darker path, that's not our concern. We'll show them our moral fortitude."

"They think we're demon incarnate!" Zachary argued.

"Then their government needs replacing as much as ours," Armin said. "And the only way that's going to happen is if we provide our better selves as an example. We kill only when we absolutely have to, and we spare as many as possible."

As if by telepathy, Dot Pixis found the perfect complement to Armin's statement. "Remember that the enemy soldier is as scared of us as we are of him."

"What of the titan shifters?" Zachary continued protesting.

"I've beaten them before," Armin said, "and as long as I'm around, they pose no threat to you."

"I have to know," Bertolt cried out. "Whose side are you on, Armin?"

"I'm on the only side that matters," he answered. "I'm on the side of peace. I'm not some naïve idiot who thinks war can be permanently stopped. But, believe it or not, I want to see a world come about where people like Bertolt and Reiner don't have to be made into weapons of war as small children."

The two traitors stood in stunned silence. They'd already been confused by this godlike youth, but this was new. He'd acknowledged them as human beings, and pointed out thoughts they'd both had. Loyal as they were to Marley, each bore the scars of war, and none of their superiors saw them as anything except instruments of murder. Armin deconstructed them psychologically. He blamed them for their actions to the extent that they were culpable. Yet, he saw the real villains behind their actions.

"If it hadn't been for the government of Marley wanting us dead," Armin explained, for everyone's benefit, but also, the three titan shifters in particular, "these three would have had a normal childhood."

Zachary clenched and unclenched his fists. He saw several threats he didn't like. The crown held a secret that would likely mean they'd have to overthrow the king. There were titan shifters from a foreign government sworn to exterminate everyone he knew and loved simply for who they were, and war was unavoidable. Most of all, he saw the resoluteness of Armin Arlert and the power of a god who would get what he wanted, one way or another. Ultimately, he knew that all of human affairs were of concern to Arlert only as far as he felt concerned.

Armin saw a look that he knew would come, but hoped would be far away. Everyone saw him as the possibly vengeful god. It was true, from a practical standpoint. If he wanted, no known human weapon could hurt him. That only meant threats from beyond the stars would come. What he really wanted was to put the pointless titan versus human war, the Marley vs Eldia war, and any other useless wastes of time behind everyone, so the humans could unite their efforts and sciences against enemies he couldn't even forsee.

"Fine," Zachary relented. "All Marleyan Titan shifters will be held in semi-permanent custody of the scouting regiment, specifically to be closely monitored by Armin Arlert, who will be tasked with their permanent observation and handling, until such time as formal arrangements with Marley can be established." He turned to the traitors and Annie. "In the meantime, they will obey all orders given by commanders, and will not disobey."

"If asked," Levi chimed in, "you _will_ take action against former colleagues and allies in Marley, and you _will not_ complain nor betray us. Understand?"

Reluctantly, the traitors gave glances at each other, and nodded in agreement.

"Don't get me wrong," Armin said, approaching, sternly. "I'm not suddenly your best friend. If you force me to kill you, _I will_." He let out a sharp breath for effect, turning his head slightly. "Understand?"

Bertolt and Reiner gazed into his eyes and saw fierce steadfastness. He had the same loyalty to his friends that they once did. None of the friendly lightheartedness of the years they spent training for the scout regiment showed. In a strange way, they respected Armin, as he seemed to accept his role as the leading example for the human race.

Armin didn't like making an example of his powers. The events of the past two days forced him to step into a leadership role he didn't entirely feel comfortable with. As he started speaking his mind, people deferred authority to him he felt scared exercising. It didn't surprise him, as his demonstrations of power would scare any normal person. Yet, he hadn't been elected. Gaining any sort of authority due to fear was the last thing he wanted. And yet, at the same time, he couldn't deny the frightening thought that his word being accepted de facto proved easier than trying to argue.

"So, what happens now?" Eren said, approaching.

"Now," Commander Erwin cut in, "I'd say the best thing would be to get these people away from the city as soon as possible."

"Yet, we need to finish repairing the gate," Levi said. "So, what do we do?"

"Armin will have to stay here for a few days," Dot Pixis cut in. "To make sure titans don't get close to the gate."

"That's fine with me," Armin replied. "I'm not eager to push out any time soon."

The crowd began to disperse. Over the next few hours, plans were drawn up to repair the gate. Commander Erwin and Levi gathered the scout regiment and they patrolled the area around Trost to make sure there weren't titans around that could pose a threat to the repair effort. They encountered a few here and there, and Armin destroyed them with minimal effort. After the area was cleared, they marched back to the gate, where workers had releveled the ground, scraped out the shattered brick and begun assembling the mechanisms to close the gate once again. The whole time, Levi and Erwin kept the traitors close, making sure they never lost sight of them. Not that it seemed to matter: the whole time, the three seemed to have lost their desire to fight back.

On the second day, Armin decided to speed the process up by helping the workers. His ability to lift the huge stone gates onto the pulley system saved hours of work. After an hour of rigging up the pulley system, Bertolt and Reiner even got to work helping assemble the inside pulley system. Everyone eyed them suspiciously, at least. Some actively avoided or even spat on them. Levi found himself amazed at the fact that hothead Reiner kept calm. Whatever Arlert had said to them, had worked.

Thanks to the extra help, and a massive assist from Armin, the work was finished by morning on the third day after the trial. The order came down from on high for the scouting regiment to search the interior of Wall Maria for titans and exterminate them. As the group gathered supplies and left Trost district in search of trouble, Erwin set some guidelines to ensure that casualties would be minimized, and no possibility would emerge that unnecessarily risk anyone.

"First," he said, "we travel as one group. Even when we spread out in formation, we do not get far enough away from each other that we can't quickly respond to attacks. Second, Armin," he looked at the most important member of the team, whether the boy liked it or not, "since you're so fast, you'll be near the back so no one can sneak up on us. Understand?"

"Understood," Armin replied, saluting his fist in front of his heart, then returning to attention.

"This is important," Levi cut in. "We're going to fan out and head for Shiganshina, make sure that the wall is intact." He looked at Armin, then swept his gaze across the group. "Arlert said he patched the wall. We're going to make sure it stayed that way, then sweep in a circle until we've covered the interior of the wall and return to Trost." He looked to Erwin for approval, who nodded. "And are there any questions?"

The group responded that they understood and agreed.

"Then starting today, we fight to take back our world!"


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER FIVE**

"I don't understand why you don't want me to just fly around the wall and see if it's broken," Armin protested.

Levi and Erwin exchanged glances and half-grinned. "Look," Levi said, "I know you're some kind of god-like being, but we need to do some things on our own."

"Human beings need to have some control," Erwin explained.

Armin sighed, but did not protest further. The group gave a final huzzah before the commander gave a signal with his blade and the crowd of Scout Regiment soldiers on horseback thundered out from the gate. The traitors were on horseback, close to the rear, intentionally unarmed, while the man who defeated them ran behind. To all those within sight, Armin on foot, keeping up with sprinting horses looked a mixture of impressive and hilarious. The perfect runner's posture he had, moving at what amounted to a crawl compared to his full capacity, not even breathing heavily, simultaneously set the standard and provided basic entertainment. His eyesight swept over the crowd and back to the front. He could see far ahead objects with perfect clarity, so he knew what lie ahead before Erwin and Levi, despite the two being at the front. Occasionally, he glanced at the traitors. Their body language spoke to him like stories read to a child. What had been said between them in the jail cell had broken through. Perhaps they didn't agree with everything, but they couldn't deny his logic and empathy, and just being able to recognize that Marley was not infallible had cracked the cement holding their beliefs together.

"Do you have a plan for if we run into Zeke?"

Armin glanced at Bertolt, who had posed the question. He gave a serious look. "I'm going to stop him from hurting any more people," he said. "After that, I want to see if we can talk."

Reiner raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You aren't going to kill him?" he asked.

"If he makes it necessary," Armin countered. "I want to reserve killing for the last possible option. Life is precious."

Bertolt's mouth dropped a bit. "But, he's not going to give up that easily!" He considered it. "Hell, _we_ haven't even given up completely on what we believe!"

"I don't want to be the man who rules," Armin said. "Rulers use control over life and death to instill fear. I want to _guide_. My father told me that, on Krypton, the symbol of my family stands for 'hope.'" He looked straight at Reiner and then Bertolt. "I believe everyone," he paused, " _everyone_ , has the ability to do good in the world."

Annie shot a skeptical look. "It's easy to say," she shouted over the din. "You can't be hurt."

Armin looked past Bertolt at Annie. "I wasn't always," he said. "My powers had to develop. When I thought a titan was going to eat me, you're right. I wanted someone to save me." He blinked a few times. "But what I thought was going to be my last thought before dying, was about how much I could've done to save Eren and his mother."

"Am I supposed to believe that?" she shot back.

"Believe what you will," he said.

"Titan!"

Armin heard the giant footsteps to the far left of the group long before Connie Springer shouted. With a thud, the fair-haired youth took to the sky with a mighty leap. His eyes let loose a mighty blast of heat, piercing the titan's neck in an eyeblink, and the creature collapsed. Taking to the air, he landed back in formation and quickly resumed his pace.

They rode forward for several hours. Halfway through the ride, a splinter group broke off and rode in a different direction. The main group came to an old fort they decided to use as an encampment just a half-hour's ride from the forest of giant trees. The others rode with Erwin in the direction of the eastern section of the wall. Bertolt and Reiner helped everyone disembark, and Armin carried most of the supplies in. Everyone seemed nervous about their treasonous comrades, but the assured stances of both Armin, and their team leader Levi, settled everyone down. Eren and Mikasa sat on the floor next to a pillar, while Armin listened with his enhanced hearing.

"So," Mikasa asked, curious. "What do you hear?"

"Mostly animals rustling around," he said. "The wind. There aren't as many titans about as there used to be, so the distant rumbling of feet isn't as much as it was a year ago."

A thought occurred to Eren, that bugged him how he hadn't asked it before. "How do you sleep if you hear so well?" He asked.

Armin seemed a bit puzzled. "I don't know," he said. "I close my eyes, and my mind drifts away…somewhere."

"To Krypton?"

Armin glanced at Mikasa. "Yeah."

Levi approached as everyone else was settling in for the evening. "Armin, since you don't have to sleep," he said, "I think you should watch."

Armin nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense," he agreed.

"So," Eren said, "after we make it to Shiganshina, then we're going to circle the wall?"

Levi nodded. "If we ascertain that the wall is unbroken, then we're going to regroup at Trost and go over our plans to expand past the walls."

Eren pumped his fist. "I'll finally be able to see what's past the outer wall," he said.

Armin stretched and headed outside. He hovered up to the roof. His vision allowed for perfect sight, even in the darkness, and he decided to make his evening more eventful by clearing the forest. Lots of titans made their home in the giant trees, and using his senses to keep sight on the fortress, spent an hour methodically killing them. After making sure the forest was clear, he returned to the roof of the fort. He could see, off in the distance, the various new villages that had sprung up in the absence of death threats.

"How are you holding up?"

Armin turned to see Levi standing behind him. "Couldn't sleep?" he asked the leader.

"I sleep in bursts," Levi explained. "Keeps me sharp when I need to be."

"I'm fine," Armin said.

"You may not be God," Levi said, "but you're certainly a godsend. I didn't like it when Commander Erwin says I was the strongest fighter in the military, but I'm eager to tell you that we have hope because of you."

Armin accepted the compliment in stride. "Thank you, sir," he said. "I'm just doing what I can. Considering I can't be hurt like everyone else, I should at least be doing what I'm doing."

"That's just what I wanted to talk to you about," he argued. "I think you _can_ be hurt, just not by anything of _this_ world."

The fair-haired youth gave a snort. "I worry about that all the time," he confessed. "I mean, my people had machines that could fly through space, and machines that could have you talk face to face across the distance of the planet. How could they all just die?"

Levi shrugged and leaned against the edge. "I'm thinking long-term," he explained. "That 'ghost' of your father, Zor-El, he's taught you stuff. Do you think you could get him to teach us stuff?"

Armin turned to his commander. "You mean, teach everyone the knowledge of Krypton?" Levi nodded. "I think that wouldn't be too hard. What's brought this on?"

"If _we_ had machines to talk to each other across the globe," Levi explained, "and machines that could allow anyone, anywhere, to know any piece of information at the press of a button, imagine what _we_ could be as a species."

"That's something I want to talk to _you_ about," Armin said. "Early in Krypton's history, they had guns like the ones the military police have. But their guns, even back when they used powder and bullets, were repeaters. Don't you find it odd that _no one here_ has thought of that in a hundred years?"

"Re…peater?" Levi said, mulling the word over in his mind. His eyes lit up. "You mean, a gun that can fire several shots before being reloaded?" Armin nodded. He scratched his chin. "Yeah, if we have cannons, why the hell _haven't_ we thought of that?"

"I didn't think that should be so hard," Armin shot back.

"No," Levi agreed. "That stinks of what those traitors said." He couldn't help but chuckle. "If the king's line wants to remain in power, then suppressing technology that would lead to opposition would only be necessary. Damn. And here I was hoping those traitors were full of shit."

"So we're going to have to eventually take down the king," Armin said.

"Add that to the long list of shit we have to do," Levi quipped.

"What's your story?" Armin asked.

Levi chuckled again. "Oh, no. Don't ask that. I don't want to stay out here all night explaining myself." He looked at his most useful soldier. "I want you to worry about helping humanity, not my story."

"I wonder," Armin said. "What would you do if you could do the things I can?"

Levi sat against the edge. "Well, let me think about it," he said. After a minute or so, he cleared his throat. "I'm not like you. One of the things I admire about you is, you could kill anyone who irritates you. And yet, you don't. Me? I would have killed those two traitors, and flown over to their country and laid their government to waste just so I knew no one would be coming here to kill my people." He looked at the boy with genuine approval. "And here you are, honestly wanting to find a peaceful solution. I honestly don't know if I could do it like that."

"We all do what we can, sir," Armin said.

That evening, Armin patrolled the area and saw nothing out of the ordinary. The sun came up and he felt a familiar feeling of peace wash over him as the bright rays touched his skin. The reason the crew had slept so soundly was due to his powers. His powers came from the sun. So, it made a kind of sense that he would feel better when the lights came on. Still, it reminded him of his work ahead. The group gathered their belongings and rode for a few more hours and eventually arrived at Shiganshina. Armin and Levi checked the wall, and sure enough, the rock barrier remained melted to the edges of the hole, blocking the entrance. After a few minutes checking the place to make sure there were no titans around, they came to the wreckage of the old Yeager household.

Armin grabbed the edge of the roof with his right hand, and a quick jerk later, the ground quaked with the boom of the timber and rock shattering. The group crept down stairs, Levi forcing the cellar door open. Eren, Mikasa, and Armin led the group in. Inside, the room bewildered those who saw it. It wasn't some impressive sight that caught their attention, but rather, the lack of surprises. There were only things that one could find in almost any well-stocked basement.

Armin looked around with his see-through vision, and came across it almost the same time Mikasa did. The desk in the center had a drawer with a false bottom. Eren eagerly shoved his key into the lock and opened the drawer, pulling the fake wood panel off. Inside was a book, three exactly. There seemed to be a mixture of oils to keep deterioration from occurring. Eren took them and pulled from one a picture.

"What's that?" Hange Zoë asked, approaching. "A portrait?"

Levi shook his head, examining the edges. "It's far too perfect for any person to have drawn," he said.

"It's a photograph," Armin said. Everyone gave him a quizzical look. "There's a special device called a 'camera' that imprints light onto paper."

Eren turned the photograph over. His jaw almost dropped. "You're…right," he said, glancing at Armin. His gaze passed over the group. "It says here that my father comes from beyond the walls."

Armin used his vision to see through to the surface, where Reiner and Bertolt were sitting calmly, waiting. Perhaps they were different, he wondered. Or perhaps they simply knew if they did anything, his punishment of them would be as swift as it was certain. "I guess this confirms the Eldia and Marley issue," he said.

"As much as I'd love to sit here and read about the truth," Levi interrupted, "I'm sure we have a mission to return to." Erwin nodded in approval.

"Let's get a move-on," Erwin said, leading everyone out.

As the group re-horsed, Bertolt looked over at Eren. "What're those?" he asked.

Eren held the trio of books up for effect. "The truth," he replied. "It seems you guys weren't lying."

The group had left Shiganshina and travelled for about an hour. They stopped to let a few of their ranks relieve themselves, when the sound of horses in the distance roused Armin's ears. "A group on horseback is coming," he said.

Everyone drew their attention to the south. A group of soldiers, ragged and not all with their clothing intact, rode towards the group. Erwin and Levi met them halfway. "What the hell's going on?"

The officer caught his breath long enough to answer the commander's question. "There are titans headed for Trost district!" he shouted.

Armin whipped his head around in various directions. He used a combination of vision powers to see for miles around. Flying upward, he examined the wall from afar. After a minute, he descended. "I don't understand," he said. "There's no breaks in the wall."

"Where are they?" Levi shouted.

"There's two groups," the officer replied. "One of them is headed towards Ragako Village, and the other is headed to Trost, led by a huge, ape-like titan."

Connie Springer almost screamed. "That's my hometown!"

Bertolt and Reiner shot a glance at each other. Levi cut them off. "Is that the Beast Titan you were talking about?" Erwin asked the two. They nodded.

Erwin and Levi shot glances at each other. "Ragako is a ten-hour ride from here," Levi estimated. "How close is the second group?"

The officer contemplated. "We turned tail and ran as soon as our party was obliterated," he explained. "We rode for the better part of an hour to get here. We believe they were chasing us."

Armin looked up. There were at least fifteen titans, about an hour and a half's ride from where they were. They'd closed some distance, but were still slower than the horses. He turned to his superior officers. "What do you want me to do?"

Erwin looked at Levi, then at Armin. "Armin, go to Ragako and stop them," he ordered. "Take the traitors with you, because we sure as hell don't want them with us if we're fighting titans."

Armin looked at Mikasa and Eren. "Looks like you'll be able to fight back after all," he said.

"I may be human," Eren said, "but I'm not going to die that easily."

Bertolt and Reiner wrapped their arms tightly around Armin. The smaller boy didn't need to threaten them—his look said everything. He draped an arm around their waists, and levitated upwards. "I'm going to try to fly slow enough that you don't die," he told them. He flew at a few hundred miles per hour, just fast enough that, if they kept their heads facing down, they would be fine. It still took an unbearably long time to reach it. Almost thirty-five minutes of flight before he saw the village unbearably close to a large group of titans.

The Beast Titan stopped its march as it saw a human figure, carrying two others, literally fly in like a shooting star and land not a hundred yards from where he stood. Zeke Yeager had but a few minutes of curious contemplation before he noticed two very important people, Bertolt Hoover and Reiner Braun, were the two being carried. "How did you fly?" the booming voice inquired. "What's going on?"

Before speaking, Armin picked up a rock bigger than his hand. Tightening his grip caused the rock to fissure and then break, as more pressure crushed the stone into powder as the larger chunks fell loose. He opened his palm to reveal an unblemished hand. "I'm only going to say this once," he commanded. "I'm not human. I've discovered Marley's secret, and these two traitors have been defeated, and their plan revealed." He took a breath. "We haven't killed them, and I'm going to give you a single opportunity to surrender."

The titan almost laughed. "Is this some kind of elaborate joke?" he asked.

"This may sound odd," Armin countered, "but I actually _don't want_ to kill you. I will, however, if you don't surrender right now. If you want, I'll even be so kind as to escort you and these two back to whatever vessel brought you here. You all can leave and tell your people what happens if they attempt to kill us."

A guffaw escaped the Beast Titan's maw. "You honestly expect me to buy that?"

Armin released a disappointed sigh. "It's the best offer you're going to get."

"Bertolt! Reiner!" Zeke shouted. "Have you turned traitor to the cause?"

"Armin beat us," Bertolt explained. "Even together, we were like insects to him."

Armin stepped to the left of Zeke, and opened his eyes wide. An arc of heat burst forth, and a section of fur too close to it burst into flame. Zeke patted the fire out, and looked behind him to see three-fourths of the titans behind him gone, having been reduced to vapor. Armin then stepped to his right and finished the job. "I have abilities far beyond those of normal men," he said. "You have zero chance of winning."

"Oh, do I?" Zeke asked. "I have to…!"

His shout was cut off mid-sentence when Armin incinerated him. He wasn't about to take chances. After destroying Zeke, he took a ragged breath and let it out. Reiner glanced at him, confused. "What's wrong?" he said, trying to calm himself over the loss of his war master.

Armin wiped his eyes. "I don't," he stammered, " _enjoy_ killing people."

"No!" a faint voice cried out in the distance. Only Armin could hear it. He whipped his head to the left. He shot upwards into the air to get a better look.

Erwin and Levi's group had made it to the battle. Most of the titans were dead. His eyes swept over Mikasa, looking shocked. Armin looked farther. His heart could have stopped.

Eren had gotten eaten by a titan.

Clenching his teeth, Armin shot forth like a cannon blast. The wake of his acceleration threw Reiner and Bertolt in different directions. He covered the distance in seconds at hypersonic velocity and extended his fist. The titan's neck and head splashed against Armin, raining down on the soldiers. He spun around and headed back to rip the decomposing body in half and free his friend. Or, he wanted to.

Before he could, a giant fist erupted from the smoking corpse of the titan. A second arm pried the flesh apart. Standing fifteen meters tall, a titan of rippling muscle and long black hair with a wide mouth of teeth strode forth. Smoke poured off its body and pointy ears as it kicked the remains of the corpse loose. Armin stared at it in disbelief. His vision revealed the truth: Eren had turned into a titan. Eren was a titan shifter.

Armin scarcely had time to process the information as Eren assaulted the two remaining normal titans, killing them with relative ease. "Eren!" Armin shouted.

Eren turned his attention to his friend. A growl erupted.

"Eren!" Armin continued. "I'm here to help!"

He was so focused on helping figure out Eren's situation, that he hadn't paid attention to the fist headed his way.

Eren socked Armin with a vicious right hook. The boy shot backward, blasting through rocks and splintering trees like a gunshot through a house.

Armin came to rest in a ditch dug by his inadvertent flight path. "Well, that sucked," he said.

He took to the sky and was back in front of Eren in an instant. Eren swung again and again, but with Armin paying close attention, the fists may as well have been under water. Armin had an idea. He hovered in front of Eren's face. Sure enough, he heard the air shift.

Eren swung, and hit himself in the head. His titan form collapsed to the ground against a tree. Steam began to pour from the stump where his right fist used to be. Armin landed on the shoulder, and drove his hand through layers of flesh. He wrapped his arm around Eren's midsection, and yanked him free like a splinter from a hand. He carried his friend to the ground as the titan body disintegrated.

"Mind telling me what the hell just happened?" Levi asked.

Armin shook his head. "Your guess is as good as mine."

"Is he a traitor like the others?" Erwin chimed in.

"Hannes was there when Eren was born," Armin said. "He couldn't be from Marley." His head shot up. "Oh shit!"

"Find those two! Now!" Erwin shouted.

Armin flew up and returned to Ragako village. It took him less than a minute. He expected some form of chaos to await him, or even worse, for the two to have fled. Searching the countryside for hours seemed a possibility. What he didn't expect, was the two to be quietly awaiting his return.

"So," Bertolt chimed in. "What happened?"

"Give me a moment," Armin replied. He gathered his thoughts. "A titan ate Eren and he turned into a titan."

Reiner shot Bertolt a look. "So, he's a titan shifter?"

Armin nodded.

"This is serious," Bertolt said. "That means someone gave him the titan formula at some point in the past, and he ate one of the nine titans!"

"I believe you told me about that," Armin said. "So, this complicates things."

"Let's get back to Trost," Reiner said. "I don't want to get you in trouble."

Armin flew them back to the group. It took far too long. When he set found the riders, they'd started without him and had made a decent distance. The plan to inspect the entire wall had apparently been scrapped. He set down and they provided horses.

"What's the situation?" he asked.

Levi shook his head. "We're through inspecting the walls," he said. "We've got to report back to Trost that Wall Maria is retaken and that Eren can shift into a Titan form."

Armin hung out near the back of the formation, keeping a close eye out for everyone. The two traitors had looks on their faces that spoke of conflict. "I'm sorry I had to kill him," he told them. "I gave him a chance. He didn't seem to want peace."

Reiner blinked deliberately. "You were just doing your job, protecting people," he said. "Just like Zeke was."

Armin clenched his teeth a moment in frustration. "I'm _not_ ok with that!" he exclaimed.

Bertolt turned his head. "Look, Zeke wanted what we wanted," he explained. "For the death of the people of this island so that the world could see the Eldian people were free of the stigma!"

Armin glared at him. "But even still," he argued, "you have to admit that doesn't make sense."

"The reason everyone hates the Eldian race," Reiner explained, "is because, like I said before, everyone is worried the king will unleash the wall titans and trample the world!"

Armin asked a question, that, unbeknownst to him, would resonate with the two for years to come. "If Marley's government wants to get control of the wall titans," he asked, "what do you think they're going to do with them?"

"They're going to keep them from being used!" Bertolt said. Armin shot him a disappointed stare. Horror began to appear on the traitor's face. "No…"

"You think they'll be able to resist using such a powerful weapon?" Armin answered. "When have men been able to resist using a new, powerful, terrible weapon?"

"You don't know that," Reiner argued.

"I know what makes sense," Armin countered.

They rode for several hours before stopping to camp in a clearing. Armin kept watch again. Eren woke up halfway through the night because he found his mind riddled with questions. Mikasa slept a bit farther away, so he didn't wake her up.

"What do you think's going on?" Eren asked.

"Now we know that in order to become a titan shifter," Armin said, "you have to be turned into a mindless titan and eat one of the nine titans."

Eren slouched against a tree. "Yeah," he agreed. "The problem is, who do you think I ate?"

"I've been thinking about that for hours," Armin admitted. Honestly, I think…" He took a deep breath and closed his eyes a moment.

The dark-haired youth felt his heart rate shoot up. What was his friend about to say? "Armin, what's wrong?"

Armin's heavy sigh frightened Eren. "Eren, I…" He swallowed. "I think you ate your father."

Eren shot to a standing position. His breath seemed frozen in his lungs. A shot of pain ran echoed through the halls of his being. Then, his vision went blank.

The cold evening air of winter echoed around a young Eren Yeager. A familiar face stared down at him. "Son," Grisha Yeager said, tears leaving his eyes, "this is the only way."

Eren shook his smaller head. "Father, what…?"

"The one to take it will be you!" Grisha shouted. He drew the vial and needle from his pocket.

"No!" Eren protested. "No! Father!"

The needle pierced the skin. The fire entered the boy's veins. He felt his consciousness fade away. A thunderous boom and a plume of smoke erupted all around. The young boy ceased to be; in his place, a titan-shaped child appeared. The huge hand reached down, ravenous jaws opened wide.

Grisha Yeager smiled as he accepted his fate.

The next thing Eren remembered was coming to. He pushed to a sitting position and shuffled around with his hands. He came across a familiar pair of glasses, broken in half. A skeleton, exuding smoke and billowing heat, disintegrated piece by piece. He stared at the glasses with trembling hands. "Father!" His scream pierced the darkness.

"Eren!"

The vision vanished as Armin grabbed his friend by the shoulders. Eren snapped to attention immediately, gathering his bearings as tears streamed down his face. "Armin, I…" He collapsed into his friend's arms. He couldn't even bring his arms up into a hug, he'd been struck so numb by the revelation. Armin grappled his friend tight. Eren gradually found the strength to return the grip.

"Eren!" Mikasa shouted, awoken by the shout. "What's going on?"

He turned to her, his face semi-blank. "I…" The words choked him; he forced his voice to speak. "I'm a titan…" His eyes wouldn't let him see until he fought back with blinking and opening them wider. "I'm a titan…because I ate my father!"

"Oh, god," Mikasa said, drawing him in.

Armin gave a look at Erwin and Levi, startled by the sudden outburst, that indicated everything was alright.

Somewhere in those books, Armin realized, was the truth that Bertolt and Reiner had alluded to. Grisha Yeager had sacrificed himself to grant incredible power, and a major bargaining chip to his youngest son. The war between Marley and the Eldian people ran a lot deeper than he ever expected. As he comforted his friends, he pondered the depths of hatred between the two groups. What had the Eldian empire done to warrant a nation such as Marley sending children such as Bertolt and Reiner to fight and die against their enemies? The degree of brainwashing that had happened to create such blind demonization of ordinary people, staggered him.

How do I end this war? Armin thought.

He held post until morning, where the scout regiment saddled up and returned to Trost to report the events that had transpired.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER SIX**

The return to Trost seemed a lot longer than the previous trip had been. Bertolt and Reiner sat in the same silence they'd been in since losing to Armin days earlier. Armin had spent most of the journey pondering exactly how to best use his abilities. Zeke would not report back to his men, and they would assume, correctly, that he had been destroyed. It would mean war would be moved up. There had been a campaign of misinformation regarding the people of the island.

Levi and Erwin spent most of the journey trying to process all the information that had come up during the trip. They'd just come to understand how their world worked—the titans would eat, the human race would fight and die, and the cycle would repeat itself—and then they discovered one of their own was an alien. Not only that, but his abilities so eclipsed the average human, that religions could have been written about beings less than Armin Arlert. Yet, what confused both—but especially Levi—was that the young man had no aspirations of rulership. It directly contradicted the notion of absolute power corrupting. Erwin thought about it, and he knew that if he had such power, he would have deposed the king and instituted a whole new government. The willingness of the boy to take orders amazed and impressed him.

Eren Yeager had to be aroused from a stupor of conflicting emotions every so often. Such a long, strange trip it had been. First, he had seen his whole world change when his friend discovered unbelievable things about himself, saved his mother from a titan, and joined the military. Furthermore, Armin had brought a sense of hope that hadn't existed in quite some time. They hadn't talked to many of the general population, but the amount of people living outside the major towns and in land once occupied by titans, spoke to the feeling of empowerment that the auburn-haired youth had provided. Then, if that hadn't been enough, he discovered, upon being _eaten_ , no less, that _he himself_ was a titan shifter, just like the two traitors. What would happen next?

Upon their arrival in Trost district, the news spread rapidly that Wall Maria was intact, most of the titans had been destroyed, and it turned out that there were truths unlike any other. Yes, the story about Marley and Eldia were true, but the fact of the matter was that the conflict was deeper than almost any could have predicted.

Eren and Mikasa met up with Armin about fifty miles out in the wilderness between Wall Maria and Wall Rose a few days later. A giant structure had been built. Standing as tall as a fortress, and occupying several acres of land, it looked less like a castle made of stone and more like metal.

"Armin," Mikasa said, looking up at the building, slack-jawed. "What's this?"

Eren shook his head. "I've never seen something like this before," he admitted.

"Working with the ship that brought me to Earth," Armin explained, "I've been working day and night for three days to put this together. It was an idea that Levi gave me."

It was dome-like, with curved walls that had a dark grey metallic shine. The front door slid open as the trio approached, which startled and bewildered Armin's friends. A man appeared from the side corridor. He had medium-length brownish-auburn hair, slightly tan skin, and a figure-hugging bodysuit.

Both Eren and Mikasa stood in awe of the man. "Are…you…" Eren began, his voice breaking up, "Armin's father?"

Zor-El motioned to the structure behind him. "Yes," he admitted. "Or, at least, what's left of him. My name is Zor-El."

"Zor…El?" Mikasa said. "How is this possible?"

"The things our people were capable of, miss," Zor-El began, "may seem like utter magic to you. But just as your ancestors mastered fire and the wheel, Krypton was a place where our people ventured out into the stars."

"Your son has done so much for us already," Mikasa replied. "It's like an answer from Heaven."

"Corporal Levi and I were talking about how it was strange that there are things we didn't know," Armin said. "Think about it; didn't the textbooks in school say humanity outside the walls was exterminated, instead of saying that humanity outside the walls was _believed_ to be exterminated?"

Eren put two and two together. "You think the monarchy is definitely hiding things from us?" he asked.

Armin nodded. "I think so, and furthermore," he added, "I spoke to my father about it, and we think it's a good idea to create a place like this where people can come to learn. This is just the beginning. The key to everything is knowledge."

"They can't stop you," Mikasa stated. "And if you teach the people, they can't stop them either."

"If my son can change the world," Zor-El agreed, "then so can I."

From the local communities and villages surrounding Trost, the more intellectually inclined and the teachers of the young arrived first. It seemed difficult, initially, to instruct people when their gap in knowledge was so great. Zor-El's consciousness found itself having to go over topics of great simplicity for much of the first few days. Armin helped where he could, using his Kryptonian training to give basic instruction where needed, during part of the day, and managing his duties as a member of the Scout Regiment the other half. With the titan population enormously reduced, the duties of even such established warriors as Levi were reduced by as much as two-thirds.

It wasn't very long, not more than a week, before the military police from the innermost circles of government started arriving. Armin noticed them long before it was brought to his attention. The obvious ploy was, for some reason, to keep the populace uninformed as long as possible, but the efforts of such men as Dot Pixis and Erwin Smith kept even the worst offenders at bay. The King's men might not want progress to happen, Armin knew, but as long as he could help it, the future would be brought to pass.

Armin demonstrated many techniques taught to him about agriculture. Even without the aid of machines, he knew, the productivity of the fields could be raised by as much as sixty percent.

Some of the heads of local government and farm leaders watched with incredulity.

"There's an important resource involved in growing crops," Armin instructed. "Nitrogen. It makes up most of the air we breathe, and some crops remove it from the soil." He held up an ear of corn. "Corn uses up the nitrogen in the soil. It's therefore important to swap one season to the next, with a crop such as these," He held up a pile of various nitrogen-fixing plants, "or various cereal grains in order to fix the soil."

"So," One farmer asked, "what about this irrigation you're talking about?"

"It's important to have a system of irrigation that doesn't rely on the rain," Armin said. He pointed upstream. "I'm going to show you how to build a system that will feed water from a higher elevation to the crops so it will stay watered regularly."

Over the next several hours, he helped assemble a sturdy system of water ducts that would easily irrigate the crops so men wouldn't be hauling buckets back and forth or waiting for it to rain. Next, the blueprints were drawn for newer tilling and harvesting equipment that would allow one worker to be as efficient as three.

After spending the better part of a day talking to hundreds of different farmers and town leaders, Armin returned to his commanders and gave them a heads-up on what he had been up to. Erwin and Levi sat outside with him and looked on at the rapid increase in activity.

"I have to admit," Erwin began, "I was skeptical at first, but even the MPs are getting skittish."

Levi folded his arms. "Honestly, I think they're getting frustrated at their inability to strongarm you into obeying them," he said. He looked Armin in the eye to show he was serious. "We might have to take action against them."

Armin shook his head. "I know," he replied. "I'm just not looking forward to it."

"We've gotten the message to too many people to threaten or kill all of them," Erwin countered. "This nonsense the king is up to is unraveling a bit at a time."

Eren and Mikasa joined Armin during his regular duties with the Scout Regiment. With the decrease in duties, the trio spent more time with each other, catching up on calm times before the inevitable storm. "So, how much do you think the king wants you dead?" Eren asked. "I've heard Erwin talking and it seems like the MPs are upset."

"The king doesn't want the people to advance," Armin said. "In the end, I think there's a delicate balance that's kept between the outside world and our own."

"But you're going to ruin that plan," Mikasa cut in.

"I think I've already done that," Armin shot back.

"So, how's the instruction going?" Eren asked.

"People are learning," Armin said, "and that's what's great. I'm glad everything's working out." He pointed to the farmland out in the distance. "The farmers are getting yields and the businesses are working at higher efficiencies."

"You're changing the world, Armin," Mikasa said.

Armin looked over at the fields and the town. He found himself impressed by the improvements that simple knowledge had given the people. Just knowing some of the basics of physics and biology, not to mention some advanced agriculture, had turned the shops into some small factories, and made the fields produce twice as much food. What bothered him above all else, was the fact that on the other side of the world, Marley probably had much of what they had and more. The war he hoped to prevent was coming. If he had any chance of minimizing loss of life, he had to change everyone's mind. He sighed and shook his head.

That evening, when night reigned overhead, Armin snuck out of his home, dressed in the most normal looking clothes he owned, and took to the sky. Making sure not to be seen or followed, he rose miles into the sky, high enough to see the curvature of the Earth on all sides. Using a combination of vision abilities, he saw the distant shores of Marley. The would-be enemy he would have to see for himself.

A short ten minutes later, he set down on the shores of Marley's closest shore. Using super speed, as well as a bit of stealth—the sun was still up on this side of the world, so he had to be careful—he found himself blending in among the crowd. People didn't really notice him at all.

What he saw surprised him. Bertolt and Reiner had informed him of what life was like outside of the walls, but it hadn't really sunk in until he saw a motor car. Then he saw a blimp overhead. Off in the distance, a vehicle on rails collected passengers, then zoomed off. He looked in various shops and homes and saw electricity and indoor plumbing. He looked in military bunkers and saw repeating machine guns. He saw oppression in the part of the town that Eldians were forced to live in, and he clenched his fists.

When he returned home, a few hours later, he could barely sleep. The first destination he made was to the fortress he'd built. The ghost of his father returned to solid form. "Kar-El," Zor-El said. "You look concerned. What troubles you?"

"Father," Armin said, a look of supreme motivation in his eyes, "we've got a lot of work to do, and the leadership of this nation is going to fight against us. What do we do?"

Zor-El pondered this question for a long minute. "Do you feel that the safety and the will of the people is more important than the kingdom?"

Armin let out a breath, then nodded. "Absolutely."

His father approached. "Then, my son, you may have to put your force behind people opposing the king."

Armin closed his eyes and meditated on the subject for a moment. "I was afraid of that," he admitted.

Going to bed that night, he dreamed of Krypton again. He saw the red sky overhead and his father and uncle watching the skies as transport vehicles shuttled Kryptonians from one part of the globe to another. His uncle Jor-El moved a crib closer to Armin's own. In it, a short-haired boy with black hair cooed as he looked up at the sky. "Kar," Jor-El said to his nephew, "you're going to be sent to Earth with my son, Kal-El."

Armin woke up as the sun touched his hand. He looked up and saw that it was a few minutes after dawn. He stood up and stretched. Blinking a few times, he yawned and exited the house. His hearing stretched across the town, and the usual sounds of sleeping and slowly waking people gave him a sense of peace. The people he had to fight for were all around him. It was only through his effort that they were able to live in peace. The titan threat seemed so far away, and he could see the change in people's personality as they felt safer and safer.

"Ah! Help!"

A voice cried out and Armin heard it an instant later. A quick glance in that direction and he saw three armed men busting into a locked room in a nearby barracks. All of them had guns. One of them had two pistols and a knife on his belt. Their target was a young girl Armin knew as Krista Lenz.

"What the fuck?" the grizzled man with the two pistols shouted. Before either of his partners could do anything, their guns lay in pieces on the ground.

"What the hell are you doing?" Armin said.

"I don't have to tell you a goddamn thing!" the man added.

Armin reached down and drew the man's knife from his belt. In front of his face, he crushed it into steel fragments, displaying afterward his unblemished hand. "You _don't_ have to tell me," he informed the man. "But I'd recommend it."

"Fuck you!"

He threw the man into the other two. "Krista," he informed the girl, "why don't you leave while I'm dealing with this."

"I'm not going to talk!"

Armin burned a warning mark into the third man's hand, causing him to flee. Then he grabbed the grizzled man and his partner by the collar of their outfits and brought them high into the sky.

The grizzled man and his partner had been ready to kill for their cause. However, neither of them seemed to want to die. "I'm going to ask you again," Armin insisted. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You think you can scare us, demon?" the grizzled man asked. "I'm ready to die."

Armin pulled him an inch from his face. His eyes glowed fiercely red. "I'm done with this shit," he said. "There's no excuse for the people to be this far behind. My father and I teach them agricultural techniques they should have learned decades ago. Some of them didn't even know about crop rotation." He cleared his throat, forcefully. "The guns are primitive when our neighbors across the sea have rapid-fire repeating guns."

The grizzled man swallowed a bit. "How would you know about them?" he asked.

"Yesterday," Armin explained, "I flew there. I saw what they're living like. Motorized cars. Aerial vehicles. Fucking _steam power_. Internal combustion engines powered by petroleum fuel. _Electric fucking lights_." He huffed. "And here we are, traveling by horse. Travelling downstream in wooden boats when others have metal ships with _power_. Why is that? I think you know the answer."

"The Fritz family is a puppet," the man said. "The Reiss family is the real heir to the throne."

Armin let out a breath. "Alright," he said. "Now we're getting somewhere. Keep going."

"That girl, Krista Lenz, is actually Historia Reiss. She's needed. It's all part of the plan."

The other man looked at his partner with shock and dismay. "Kenny, what the fuck are you doing?" he shouted. Armin let his grip loosen a bit before catching him again. "Ah! Wait! Please don't drop me!"

Armin glared at him. "Then shut up and wait for me to talk to you." He returned his gaze to Kenny Ackerman. "You're going to give me more information. NOW."

Kenny clenched his teeth. "Alright, fucker, fine," he conceded. "This is how it is. You ever wonder why there hasn't been a war inside these walls? The first unit of the military police have kept the status quo. The Reiss family keeps the government in nice working order, and it preserves the peace."

"I find your 'nice working order' sickening," Armin said. "The people have been living in constant terror and only recently have a sense of living beyond mere survival."

Kenny Ackerman laughed. "You think your heavy-handed act first attitude will hold out forever?" He shook his head. "You are such an arrogant fool. You simply choose to do things and make them happen because you have so much power. Did it ever occur to you that there may be things you can't intimidate your way into getting?"

Those words stung Armin. It was true, he realized. Every time an obstacle appeared in his way, he used his power, or the threat of using his power, and others backed down. He got his way because of who and what he was. His anomalous nature made him a wild card normal people couldn't address. So, they took one look at his capability and stepped aside when he told them to. In a sense, he was as much of a dictator as any king or emperor.

On the other hand, his father's words often came back to him. Of the many conversations he had with Zor-El, he recalled the one regarding his purpose and place in the world.

"Kar-El, what's troubling you?" Zor-El's solid hologram had asked.

Armin had paced back and forth inside the inner chamber. "It seems like I'm just thinking and acting, and people are doing what I want," he said. "How do I know if what I'm doing is in their best interest?"

Zor-El clasped his hands contemplatively. "You were raised by humans," he explained. "You are a child of Earth as much as you are a child of Krypton. You lived among them for years without having any powers at all. You witnessed first-hand all of the troubles they go through. I believe you are equipped to help them through their hard times without worrying about going too far."

"But how will I know when I should do it for them," Armin asked, "and when I should let them try and possibly fail?"

Zor-El put a hand on his son's shoulder. "I can't give you a definitive answer," he said. "But one thing I can tell you for sure, is that right now, they're so far down that they needed you to pull them up, just to see the sun." He looked his son in the eyes. "In time, they will join you in the sun."

Armin, in the present, looked Kenny dead in the eye. "Maybe I'm forcing my will on everyone," he admitted. "But if the alternative is humanity constantly in fear of death, I'm going to take it."

Kenny looked the angry young man in the eyes and saw his unwavering determination. He couldn't do anything about it. The jig was up. "Dammit," he swore, "you're not going to get away with this forever. Sooner or later, you'll find yourself fighting something you can't just overpower."

Armin set them down on the ground. "I know," he admitted to the graying man. "And it scares me every time I think about it."

To say the result of the discovery and attempt was pandemonium would be an understatement. The military's head, Dhalis Zachary, as well as Dot Pixis and the scout regiment head Erwin Smith all found out within minutes of the discovery. The notion of the government hiding any of it fell apart thanks to Armin's use of force. In a sense, neither side got what they wanted. Kenny Ackerman was forced to tell the truth, and the population lost a fundamental trust they had of the crown. The military stepped in to take temporary command, but Historia Reiss retreated from the public light to take in the enormity of the events.

Armin found himself working harder than ever. In the wake of the huge reveal, the old leadership ousted, and a temporary military command of the populace, the auburn-haired youth spent his days teaching farmers, would-be inventors, and got the mining operations going again. His thoughts were solely on the inevitable coming war.

As Eren assisted the scout regiment, Mikasa met her friend out in the fields in between lessons. "So," she said. "You've been busy."

Armin huffed. "Busy? There was damn near a riot when the MPs were doing what they did," he said.

"Yeah," she agreed. "That was…I don't even know what that was." She shook her head. "We keep getting blindly moved around."

"My father and I are teaching people at a faster rate than before," Armin said, a lift in his voice. "Just yesterday, we got our first advanced metal working project going, and I expect that in a few more months, the gap between us and the mainland will be shorter than ever."

Mikasa's words held in her throat. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about," she admitted. "I mean, we're all used to fighting titans, but of the prospect that we might be going to war against fellow human beings? That's not something I want to be doing."

Armin let out a breath. "I'm not looking forward to it." He looked around. "Everything has to be so intricate. The farms are producing more than three times their old production. Nobody is starving in the walls here anymore. The mines are working again for the first time in ages."

"Hell," Mikasa agreed, "we've got industrial processes working again." She grabbed his shoulders. "And that's thanks to you, Armin."

He looked her square in the eyes. "I'm torn about this," he confessed. "Doesn't it seem a little…too perfect?"

"What do you mean?"

He shook his head slightly. "I not only got the two who were the Colossal and Armored Titan to see that we're not entirely demonic monsters, I also got their execution stayed," he explained. "Then, when it's revealed that the true heir to the throne is involved in a plot to keep a puppet king in charge, I step in, and boom, the problem's solved. A few people die in a short riot, but other than that, everything goes back to normal."

"What's wrong with that?" she asked.

"I'm worried something bad is going to happen," he replied. "What happens when a problem arises I can't simply stroll in and threaten my way out of?" He swallowed. "What happens when someone shows up…who can trade punches with me?"

"Armin, I'm sure we'll get through it…" She trailed off. The words sounded disingenuous even as she spoke them. Honestly, it worried her more than him, now that he mentioned it.

"My whole world couldn't possibly have died," he thought out loud. "A civilization advanced enough to make Marley look like a pile of earthworms simply fails to prevent more than two of their kind from surviving the apocalypse? Does that make sense?"

She took a breath and held it. "No, you're right," she admitted.

It took her breath away for a moment how vulnerable he looked. Despite his muscular frame and his now four inches of height on her, he looked like a scared child. The others saw him as a powerful god because his impossible gifts. Beneath them, however, he was Armin Arlert, a teenager who had an enormous weight thrust upon him. "What do I do?"

She looked at him, her eyes hardening into a serious state of conviction. "Whatever happens, we're with you," she said. "I'm with you."

As they approached Trost district, Eren met up with them. He wore a leather shirt and pants different from his normal uniform, and he had an apron on. His entire torso was caked in black soot. Mikasa looked him up and down. Black stains marked his face. "Hey, guys!" he said.

Mikasa stared at him a bit. "What the hell's happened to you?" she asked.

Eren regarded his dirty state. "Thanks to Armin's dad," he explained, "we've got our first major foundry for engine parts built. We're going to be building railways to feed the mines we're opening in the outskirts of Wall Maria, and I've spent the better part of the day installing scrubbers in the smokestacks of the factory."

Mikasa tilted her head a bit. "Scrubbers?" she asked.

"Coal is super-abundant on this island," Armin explained. "But it's really bad for the air. It makes a city's air hard to breathe and coats all the buildings in disgusting black soot. Fortunately, there's a series of chemicals you can spray directly into a stream of smoke to remove the worst of the pollution."

"So," Mikasa said, "how's things going?"

"The military is still trying to get Historia to take the throne," Eren said. "In the meantime, we're working to get our defenses up as high as possible if Marley goes to war sooner rather than later."

"Has anyone talked to Historia?" Armin asked.

Eren shook his head. "So far, she's not wanted to talk to anyone."

Armin decided then and there. "I'll talk to her," he said.

Eren was going to protest, but Mikasa held him back. "Let him go," Mikasa said. "Once he's made up his mind, who's going to stop him?"

Armin made his way into town. The bustle about amazed him a bit, as he had never seen so much work being done. A number of old military bases had been converted into factories in a matter of days. More people had moved from farming or just barely scraping by to building things than ever before. Guns and blades were being built and stockpiled. Miners were bringing in wagonloads of materials for everything from glass-blowing and tungsten for light bulbs, to copper for wire. Using knowledge from Zor-El, Armin recognized, the people of the walls would finally know luxuries Marleyans had known for a while. Power plants were being built. Word had even reached him that the military was preparing to cordon off areas outside Wall Maria to begin mining and building, so more titan extermination would take place. In the meantime, however, the fair-haired youth made his way to a building just outside the main street of Trost.

"Sir," A guard announced. "No one sees…" He trailed off as he saw. "Um, no one is supposed to see Miss Reiss."

Armin put on a calming smile. "Just announce me to her," he instructed the guard, "and if she says no, I'll leave."

The guard turned, spoke to his comrade, then entered the room. A gasp of surprise from inside the room, and Armin knew what would be said next. "Lady Reiss will see you now," the guard said.

"Thank you," Armin complimented.

Armin stepped into the room and bowed. "Historia," he said, respectfully.

"Please don't treat me like royalty," she said. "I'm scared. Everybody is treating me like I fell out of the sky and nobody wants to act like I'm a person."

Armin sat across from her. "Historia," he said, "I know you must hate where you're at. You just learned, in the span of a week, enough to put your world upside down."

She sat on her bed and sighed. "Armin," she explained, "I don't want the responsibility of this."

"I know," he said.

"They're saying I need to be the leader of humanity inside the walls," she stated. "How the hell am I supposed to do that?"

He shrugged.

"Do you have any idea what that feels like?"

He nodded. "Actually, I do," he said.

She paused. "You…do?"

He nodded again. "I'm not going to preach to you about why you should do this," he said. "I'm just going to tell you what I feel like, and you can make your own decision. I won't pressure you either way. Ok?"

She took a breath and nodded. "Okay," she agreed.

"You know most of the details," he admitted. "I won't bore you with what you've already been told. But one thing I've noticed is, when something big happens, people who actually have the authority to make a decision—guys like Levi and Erwin—look at me before they make a decision. Government officials like Zachary, they take me more seriously than some of those above them." He shrugged. "And I'm just a frightened teenager." He chuckled at the absurdity.

She took a chance. "But you're almost a god to us," she stated.

He folded his arms. "Really think about this, though," he challenged her. "In the short time since Wall Maria was breached, just a mere few years ago, we've learned a lifetime's worth of information about the way the world works." He started counting on his fingers. "We learned there are other nations, we learned that titans are or were people, we learned that life exists beyond _even the Earth_ , and we also learned that our world was made this way _on purpose_ by people who wanted us in the dark."

The weight of it struck her as both immense and absurd. "Wow," she gasped. "I hadn't thought of it like that."

"Recently," Armin said, "we learned that you're the heir to the throne and powerful people want you dead to keep that from happening, and others want you to themselves. How many people died in the riot?" He paused for a breath. "Not many. Everybody got used to it. Why? Because they knew I was here."

He stood up. When he did, she saw how others could potentially see him. Not as a young man unsure of his way in the world, but as a force of nature itself embodied in flesh. "Because they looked at you to save them," she concurred.

"I am a leader whether I want it or not," he said. "People notice and pay attention to everything I do. Because on some level, they expect more of me than just about anyone else."

"It's easy when you can work miracles," she rebutted.

"You're right," he confessed. "But I can't change that fact. What I can do, is make the most of the reality I'm dealt. If I have to save humanity, I'm going to make the most of it." He chuckled a bit. "And if we're honest, I'm not entirely selfless; I'd rather be me than some of the others on the front line."

She laughed. "Yeah, I can't argue with that," she said.

"I'm going to leave the decision up to you," he said. "Whatever you do, I'm with you."

"Armin," she said. He paused and turned around. "What do I do?"

"Whatever happens, we're with you," he said, smiling.

"I'm with you."


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

"Get clear!"

Eren's group within the Scout Regiment moved clear of the target. A sound of thunder erupted as a cannon blasted a shot upward. The shell buried itself in the upper chest of the titan and exploded a moment later. The blast showered the immediate vicinity in gore. Mikasa and several others jumped from trees and took out a few titans close by. The area outside the walls that was free of titans had expanded by a mile in diameter in just a few days. The military had expanded outward, outside Wall Maria, trying to clear the path to resources available outside the walls. The invention of lighter, more powerful cannons meant they could bring their artillery with them. They could build shells with explosive in them and launch shots that would explode on contact. The blades, produced by better means and superior technology meant that they would break less frequently and cut deeper and easier.

On the opposite side of the island, Armin had cleared a huge section of the island. In one day, the entire southern half of the island became titan-free. The military had insisted that he allow them to do the other half, so as not to rely entirely upon him for their needs. He had misgivings, but ultimately, the human race needed to prove itself, he decided.

Taking a break from his titan clearing and using his powers to locate the resources buried deep underground, he flew to the palace in Wall Sina to give his report to the military leaders and to Historia, who would give the final order. The populace looked up to the sky as the familiar streak passed overhead. Some looked at their savior, some looked at a potential devil in disguise, but his arrival always garnered crowds of attention. He touched down in the exterior opening to the gates. The mass of people clustered around the gate stepped aside as he landed gingerly in front of the armed guards.

"I'm here to give my report," Armin said.

They gave a word to another guard inside, who relayed it to someone in the palace. The word came back a few moments later. "Come in," one of the guards said.

The gate opened and Armin stepped inside. Soldiers either noticed and said nothing or bowed. Some quickly turned and went the other way. The luxurious hallways led to a huge inner chamber, where Historia sat at a huge table where an expansive map had been laid across, and Dot Pixis as well as Dhalis Zachary and a number of others made comments about various aspects of the island. They noticed him at once. "Armin, do you have new locations to report?" Pixis asked.

Armin approached and pointed to specific places on the map. "Here's a few," he said. "This one," he pointed to a specific spot, "has a huge vein of titanium ore a few hundred feet down."

Historia and Armin exchanged glances. "So we can make the tools and weapons Zor-El told you about?" she asked.

Armin nodded. "It's as strong as steel and lighter," he explained. "Also, the southern end of the island is titan-free. I haven't heard from the scout regiment yet."

"So," Pixis said, "once the island is titan free, we can focus on preparing for war without distraction?"

"I think so," Zachary agreed. "If we're going to have to repel invaders from all over the world, we won't stand a chance unless we can build this new technology at incredible speed."

"There's never been so much work," Historia said, glancing around. "For once, we have everyone helping. It's incredible. We've never built so much so quickly."

"It may not be enough," Armin admitted. "That's why my father and I are working on a new project in my spare time."

"What project?" Zachary asked.

"Getting factories ready to build Kryptonian technology," he said.

Pixis drew back in surprise. "Really? How do you plan on that?"

"That's why we're catching people up," Armin explained. "Honestly, I just need people to understand some basics. Details will come with time."

"So," Historia said, "will we be able to win this?"

"Yes," Armin said. "I'm not going to simply win. I'm going to try and save as many as I can."

On the northern end of the island, the scout regiment took a break after expanding their titan-free zone by another half mile. Eren sat down and took a drink from his canteen. Mikasa sat next to him and wiped her brow. They'd killed scores of titans in the last few hours. Near the outer edge of the group, Bertolt and Reiner sat opposite each other, eating as they regarded the group. Annie didn't want to sit too close to them. She kept to herself and did her job. All three of the foreigners to the island had a lot weighing on their mind. Bertolt felt he didn't know what to make of things anymore. He would not get a chance to bring down the government, nor would he be able to finish his mission. On the other hand, the people weren't the demons he thought they were.

Reiner snapped Bertolt out of his funk by smacking him a few times on the shoulder. His comrade startled, then they pointed up at the sky. A familiar sight flew in.

"Armin!" Eren said. He stood up and ran to hug his friend.

"Hey, guys," Armin greeted, setting down the crate he was carrying.

Levi tore open the crate, revealing extra supplies. There was extra food and water, as well as several pieces of clothing. "What's this about?" he asked.

"These are the new uniforms," Armin explained. "More moisture resistant means greater durability and fewer rashes in wet weather. Also, the new three-dimensional maneuver gear has fewer moving parts and less failure rates. So far, we've only got a few of those."

Mikasa took her old boots off and put some new ones on. "Wow, these are a lot more comfortable!" she exclaimed.

"But this," Armin said, removing a large pack from his back, "is my favorite." The large leather pack landed on the ground with a thud. The sound of jostling metal came from within.

Erwin opened the pack and pulled out what looked to be the strangest weapon he'd ever seen. "What," he said, turning it over several times in his hands, "the hell is this?"

Armin pulled one out of the pack. "It's a semi-automatic rifle," he explained.

Levi cocked his head. "Semi…automatic?"

Armin smiled at his superior officer's question. He marked a target on a tree at a distance of a few hundred meters with his eye beams. "Normal single-shot rifles wouldn't possibly be able to do this," he said. For good measure, he marked a few other targets higher and lower on the same tree. He aimed carefully at the tree. Squeezing the trigger, the rifle sounded with a crack. A fraction of a second later, he raised the rifle to the higher target. The rifle sounded again. He lowered it to the third target. A final depress of the trigger, and the rifle bellowed it's final call. There were three holes in the tree, dead on in the center of the targets.

Erwin stood with a gaping jaw. "W…wow…"

Levi jostled his head left and right in a second. "You…fired it three times in two seconds without reloading," he exclaimed.

Armin pulled the magazine from the rifle. "Thirty shots before reloading," he explained. "Semi-automatic means you fire a single shot with each pull of the trigger."

Connie Springer walked over to the tree. "You hit the target at four hundred meters," he quickly estimated. "And the shot went all the way through the tree."

Armin unloaded the round from the chamber and put the magazine and the spare bullet in the pack. "Take a look," he said, offering the gun to Reiner.

The muscular man examined the inside of the barrel close. "There's grooves inside," he noticed.

"It's called 'rifling,' and it causes the bullet to spin inside the chamber." Armin took a spare bullet and demonstrated. "Since the bullet is spinning, it is more likely to travel in a straight line. Old fashioned round balls bounce around inside an unrifled gun, which is why none of your rifles are accurate over a great distance."

"If this bullet can pierce a tree this thick," Connie noticed, "then our shots will be able to pierce titan flesh!"

"That's not all." Armin reached into the bag and retrieved a pistol. "Watch this." He marked eight targets on a tree a few hundred meters away. This time, he fired off eight shots in record time. "A semi-automatic pistol. Ten shots per magazine."

"That's amazing," Erwin said.

"I don't like the idea of people killing each other," Armin said, "but if it's going to happen, I want my friends not to be massacred."

"Armin, do you think you could do us a favor?" Levi said.

The fair-haired youth turned to his commanding officer. "Sure."

Levi looked at Erwin Smith before turning back to Armin. "We've been fighting for awhile now," he explained. "Could you finish up here for us so we can head home?"

Armin nodded. With a gust of wind and a blur, he took to the skies. About ten minutes passed, and he returned. "There," he said. "I'm done. The island is officially titan-free."

With the mission completed, the group sat for a few minutes longer before heading back to the world inside the walls. Armin walked close to his friends, with the three traitors walking in the back. They felt somewhat odd with the fact that the youth from another world didn't bother to keep a close eye on them anymore. It spoke volumes to them about how familiar he had become with them, and them with him.

Eren draped an arm around Armin. "I can't thank you enough," he said.

Armin looked over at him. He still had to get used to the fact that he stood modestly taller than the excitable boy. "You mean for everything?"

A chuckle escaped Eren. "That's a bit broad," he admitted. "Honestly, we're free, and yet, at the same time, we aren't."

Mikasa walked close by. "The nations of the world think we're evil monsters," she said.

"And even if that wasn't a big enough problem," Armin admitted, "our supply of natural resources means they can't ignore our island."

Erwin decided to enter the conversation. "I know you probably can't talk too much about what you've discussed with Historia and the military high command," he said, "but tell me honestly your thoughts on the war."

Armin took a breath. "Sir," he explained, "I think we're looking at war from all sides. I'm honestly expecting the nations of the world to set aside their differences to kill us. If we stand a chance of survival, it'll be through overwhelming technological advance."

The scout regiment leader nodded. "That's what I suspected," he admitted. "So, what's next on the agenda?"

"Technology-wise?" Armin paused to think. "We've got coal power and electric lines are being built, so we'll be able to run electric machines soon, but I've been scouting around for a specific fuel source even better than coal."

This intrigued both leaders. "What's that?" Levi chimed in.

"Crude oil," Armin explained.

"The stuff we make lantern fuel out of?" Mikasa asked.

Armin shook his head. "The crude is turned into kerosene, alright, but there are other products that can be used to power engines and are more convenient and easier to move around."

Erwin remembered something. "Is that why Historia ordered the lantern oil makers to conserve the bi-products?"

"Exactly," Armin said. "My father and I have been working with chemists to develop industrial-scale oil production. We're going to win this war with machines more powerful and advanced than theirs. That's only going to happen with better fuel."

"It's a whole new type of thinking," Levi stated. "Now that we're preparing for war against _people_ , we're worried about what they're capable of."

"Huh," Eren noticed. "I never thought of that. Titans are just mindless monsters, for the most part."

It took them a few hours to make it back to the wall and to the end of a long journey. The soldiers went back to their resting spots and the commanding officers to their private quarters. Erwin and Levi headed towards a gathering spot specifically for higher ranking officers. Eren, Armin, and Mikasa found a restaurant near the main street of town. As the gate went down with the evening sun, they ordered their food and sat for a relaxing evening.

Eren stared at his plate, a laugh escaping his mouth. His meal of lamb and potatoes intrigued him. "It's funny," he said. "Not that long ago, meat like this was for rich people in the inner wall."

"No titans means more livestock," Mikasa noted. "Now just about anyone can have meat."

Armin chuckled. "I've had ham before," he said. "This is what, lamb?" A thought came to him. "Now I know how Sasha always feels." This brought a torrent of laughter from his friends. He took a bite. As juices and flavors he'd never before experienced hit his tongue, he closed his eyes. "Wow."

Mikasa and Eren took their time with their food. It was easily the best meal they'd ever had. The military rations had gotten better since the increased food production—but even then, they'd never had access to this. A curious look had drawn itself over Mikasa's face.

Armin noticed. "Something wrong?"

"Hmm?" She turned his way. "Oh, I was just wondering. If you and your father can get us this far in this amount of time, imagine what wonders Krypton must have had!"

Armin gave a slight smile. "My dad and I've been talking about that," he told her. "We both think it would've been amazing."

"You ever miss your home world?" Eren asked.

" _This_ is my home world," Armin reassured. "As much as Krypton would've been great, as much as this place sucks, it's the place I call home."

"I'm glad," Mikasa replied.

Armin ate his meal and enjoyed his friends' company. His words rang true in his ears; as much as he enjoyed his father's dialogues about the wonders of Krypton, and the three-dimensional displays of what the planet had been, he could not replace his times with his friends on this primitive world, he couldn't imagine not being around Eren or Mikasa, or even people such as Bertolt and Reiner, treason or not. This world could be free of war, he pondered. And everyone would be better off.

That evening, as his friends retired to bed, he visited his fortress. The crowds of people entering the large structure were asleep in their homes. He walked into the inner chamber, and the metal walls reshaped into a personal room. Zor-El's specter appeared. "What troubles you, Kar-El?"

Armin sat on a seat that appeared. "Tell me more about our family," he asked.

Zor-El held his hands behind his back. "As you know, your uncle," he explained, "my brother Jor-El became convinced our world was doomed. Our work together indicated it was true. The ruling council did not agree." He blinked noticeably. "They censored his work. He sent his son—your cousin, Kal-El—here as well."

"I know that," Armin argued, "but why did I get here first?"

"If only I knew," Zor-El said. "It could be that he was delayed by our planet's destruction."

"Are there any other survivors of Krypton?"

"Doubtful," Zor-El replied. He racked his brain. "There are the prisoners of the Phantom Zone, but with any luck, you'll never have to encounter them."

Armin jerked to his feet. "What?"

With a wave of his hand, the elder member of the El family brought up a display. A crowd of shackled prisoners were marched before a judge and jury. With a wave of his finger, the judge brought a brilliant white light upon the crowd of prisoners from a strange cannon of sorts. In a moment, the group became encased on a two-dimensional surface that floated about midair. The scene ended, and Armin stood with mouth agape. "You must understand," Zor-El began.

"No!" Armin protested. "They're trapped in there…forever?"

"These were the worst of murderers and violent rabble," his father assured. "We had just finished a planet-wide civil war not long before, and we were not about to return to capital punishment."

"It's better to kill someone than to lock them away forever!" he countered. "Better not to have someone's punishment be eternal!"

"Krypton made many mistakes. That's why I wanted you to be the better person. You can embody the best of both worlds."

"I have the feeling I'm going to be seeing them again." He let out a sigh. "That's how things work out, apparently."

"You worry about impossibilities, my son," Zor-El said.

"I hope you're right," Armin said. "I'm going to bed." He departed his father with a hug. He returned home and slipped through the window. The scout regiment's altered schedule meant his friends and he could occasionally sleep in their own beds. He drifted off to dream with his friends in his view and his mind. Soon they would have to kill not just titans, but people. Furthermore, now he had the worry of other Kryptonians. Would the fighting never end?

The dark of night passed, and the light of morning came streaming in. Armin was up with the dawn and headed out to begin the process of helping the workmen set up the next bit of the plan. Hours passed, with various military units working construction. Setting up oil wells, which had never been built before by these people, required careful attention. After their hero finished his rounds putting things together, he went over to a clearing near a cliffside, where Erwin and Levi had a specific plan in mind.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Eren asked.

"We're going to war," Levi stated. "You're a titan shifter. You need to get it under control."

Eren stood, fists clenched, staring at the soldiers around up on the cliff, and Armin hovering overhead. With everyone staring, sweat dripping off his forehead, he held his hand up to his mouth, closed his eyes and recalled his anger and the way that he felt, his powerlessness. He bit his thumb.

Lighting blasted rocks to powder as a gust of steam exuded from around him. In a moment, a fifteen-meter titan stood tall. All stood in awe of the newly-formed monster out of what once had been their comrade. Armin held his breath and lowered to his level.

"Eren, how are you feeling?" Armin asked.

A growl emerged from Eren's mouth. He swung a fist at Armin, who dodged. "What's wrong?" Armin's question resulted in another attempt. "Get a hold of yourself!"

"Get him under control!" Erwin shouted.

"I've got an idea." Armin flew close to Eren. He swung and his opponent dodged at the last possible moment. The titan's fist connected with his own head. He collapsed in a booming thud on the ground as dust kicked up.

"What the hell is going on?" Levi asked.

"Baby steps," Armin said. "We can't assume he'd get it right on the first try."

An idea appeared in Armin's mind. He landed and positioned himself under Eren's left shoulder. With a heave, he flipped the massive body face down. He sat on the shoulder, next to the nape of the neck. He tapped on the flesh. "Eren, you're better than this! Wake up!"

Eren found himself in a dream. "Armin," he said. He sat on his bed. He turned around. His friend tapped on the window of the house. "Everything's fine in here."

"Wake up! Eren!"

Eren shook his head. "What?" he exclaimed. All at once, memories flooded him. Eating his father, gaining the power of the titan. His purpose returned. The dream world shattered into a thousand pieces.

Armin floated back up. The titan clamored quickly to a standing position. "Eren, if you're in control, give me a noise." His friend growled once. He stepped forward. He held up a hand and Armin gently touched it.

"So, how long do we have?" Levi asked.

"I don't know," Armin said.

For the next twenty minutes, Eren followed basic instructions. He managed to assemble a crude house out of logs. He managed to unblock a passage by moving rocks. His mouth proved incapable of speech, but he maintained control. After a good half hour, his control began to slip. He stomped around, demolishing the structure he'd built. Armin had to pull him out of his titan body.

"How did I do?" Eren asked.

"You don't remember?" Erwin asked.

"You were great for about thirty minutes," Armin said. "Then you stopped responding and I had to pull you out."

"Weird," Eren replied. "I don't remember much of it."

"That's what the training is for," Levi said.

"We need you to improve quickly," Erwin added.

Armin, for the first time, saw the strategy of war as a thing to worry about. Industrial improvements, societal education on the rise, these things could largely be done without worry. Eren's skill at using his titan form, on the other hand, was a problem that affected him personally. Bertolt, Reiner, and Annie were now something he had to worry about. He knew they still bore some strong tendencies towards Marley. The one thing that concerned him, was that their fate was one he could absolutely not interfere. The leadership would have to make their decision. He had to step back, and he knew it. He shot a look at the three of them.

"Commander," he said to Erwin, "we have to talk."

The leader of the group looked down. "There's a lot to talk about," he said. "You'll have to be more specific."

"Those three," he whispered.

Erwin glanced at them and back to Armin. "I'll bring up the issue with Pixis and he'll get back to me."

"That makes sense," Armin admitted. For the first time it struck him just how privileged his own position was. His actions as a would-be a savior of the world gave him access to high-ranking members of the government, but in the end, he was a foot soldier. It occurred to him how he threw his weight around. It bothered him that he knew it wasn't wise to interfere. No, he decided. He would let the leadership do their own thing. The human race deserved the opportunity to save themselves once in a while.

As the afternoon drew to a close, and Eren finished his training, the scout regiment headed back through the woods to town. The crowds of men headed back to their homes, to bathe and remove the dirt of working that day to build their future. Factories and oil wells & refineries springing up had put more of the poor to work than ever before. Stores that had closed now expanded and sold to more paying customers than ever before. What made Armin sad was the knowledge that the majority of these efforts and financial gains had come at the cost of war. Still, fewer people were in poverty every day and counting. Wealth had been transferred downward in greater amounts than ever before. His planet of origin had proven to be an enormous boon on the peoples of Earth.

"You feeling tired?" Mikasa asked.

Armin looked over. "Physically? No," he said. "Mentally? A bit."

"You're worried," Eren stated.

"This is stressful."

"I imagine," Mikasa replied. "You're having to do eighteen things a minute."

"That's not the concern," he answered. "I'm worried about you guys."

She took him by the shoulders. "I'm not worried," she admitted. "You know why?"

"Because you have faith in me," he guessed.

"Because I have faith in _us_ ," she countered. " _We_ are strong enough. I'm not depending on you or me, or Eren. I think _we_ can pull through this."

He nodded. "I think I can live with that," he said.

The three of them headed home. Armin felt a bit easier knowing his friends would be there come hell or high water.

Across the sea, forces gathered for war under the banner of eliminating the devils of the island. Generals discussed their plans of entry to the island, the size of the forces, and the degree to which they would have to sacrifice men, given which scenarios and whether or not the infiltration team had succeeded or failed.

The skies over Marley lit up like a second sun. At the time that Armin had fallen asleep over half a world away, a streak of flame descended from above. A huge mass of steel, glowing hot, crashed through a port town on the edge of Marley. A string of buildings was obliterated as the object carved a path of destruction on its way to a stop. A crowd gathered around the smoking crater as other crews clamored to unearth survivors from the downed buildings.

Half the metal object split open, and a hand gripped the ridge and the person pulled themselves out.

A person emerged, striding from the crater, taking the sights in.

"What the hell?" One person said.

"It's a woman!" Another added.

The figure in question, a statuesque woman of nearly six feet in height, looked at the crowd. She zoomed up to the rim of the crater and stood in front of three men. "Tell me where to find the survivor of El!" she ordered.

The people looked at each other, confused, both at her question and of her use of English. "I…I don't understand," one said.

The woman cocked her head. "He would be the most powerful man alive," she said. "The one who wields the greatest power. The survivor of the House of El."

"I…" A man struggled for answers. "Look, if it's power you're looking for, the demons on the island are what you want."

She perked up. "Tell me about these…'demons' on their island."

Another Marleyan cleared his throat. "Well, um, over in that direction," he pointed towards the sea, "the people of Paradis live. There apparently was a fireball from the sky some years ago. Blasted devils! Even the gods cry out for their destruction!"

The brunette let out a sigh of relief. "Ah, yes!" she exclaimed. "The return of Zod is at hand!"

She took to the sky.

The House of El lived on this planet. Her General's revenge on the El family would come at last.


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

The sun descended towards the horizon as the people of Paradis headed for their homes. The survey corps headed towards their barracks as the golden light of evening shone over the island. Towards the outer rim of the wall, a few sentries posted atop the gate to Wall Maria looked up and saw a black streak zooming through the sky. Before they had a chance to reach for their rifles, a figure landed. Both men stared dumbfounded at the woman in the strange black armor. She regarded them much the way a pet owner regards a yapping dog. One man drew his service pistol and the bullet ricocheted off her chest plate. In a blink, she stood a foot from them, collars firmly in her hands. She held them close enough to smell the oil of her dark hair.

"Where is," she thought a moment, "the powerful one?" She saw they didn't quite understand, so she flew upwards with them in her grip. "Where is the boy who can do what I can do?"

The soldiers coughed and sputtered. "He's…he's in Trost!"

"Good," she said, gripping them tighter. "Take me to him."

Abducted against their will, they pointed her in the right direction as she flew. After a few minutes of flying, she came to the city of Trost and a large evening crowd gathered to stare at the woman hovering. She came down to a reasonable height and unceremoniously dumped the two guards on the stone pavement. The crowd pointed and stared. "Where is your savior?" Her question caused folks to look back and forth at each other, confused. A few seemed to get it, however.

"Armin is on the other side of town," one man said. "Who the hell are you?"

"An interested party," she said, ignoring him. She flew up to just above the tallest buildings. She took in a deep breath. "Kar-El!" Her shout echoed, despite the crowd talking. "I demand your attention!"

She wondered how long she would have to wait. It turned out she wouldn't have to wait long. Armin flew up from the crowd and met her in the air. She gave a grin. This was the first crucial moment. Only the blood of the House of El would open the Phantom Zone. This kid looked like he hadn't seen a serious fight in his life.

"Alright," Armin said. "You've got my attention. Who are you and what do you want?"

"My name is Faora Hu-Ul," Faora explained, "and like you, I'm Kryptonian." She saw his face turn a bit sour in response. This was a good first start. "I'm sure you've wondered about our people."

"My father told me the only survivors were criminals," he said. "I'm not eager to meet my own kind."

Faora tilted her head a few degrees. "Come on," she said. "You have to be open minded."

"I'm willing to accept friends or allies," he explained, "but let me assure you." He swallowed, doing his best to maintain his composure. "I will not allow the humans to be destroyed."

A chuckle escaped. "I assure you, this is an opportunity to rebuild our people," she said.

"If you want to rebuild our people," he said, "I will help you. But you have to understand why I'm so skeptical."

"Of course," she said. "You've been told the tumultuous history of our world."

His gaze tightened. "I was told of the wars our people fought against each other," he explained. "Of how the Zod family fought to dominate the planet."

She gave a slight grin. "There were disagreements," she said. "The council believed that each person deserved an equal chance to preserve their lineage and their livelihood, and the factions that sided with Zod believed that certain bloodlines had degenerated, and the result could not be tolerated for our planet."

"I can't support the latter," Armin admitted. "And I won't tolerate anyone who tries to impair people's freedom to choose."

She shook her head. "A fair point." She folded her arms. "But even still, you must have noticed that your powers make people…more agreeable than not?"

"I've deliberately tried to be as hands-off as possible. Just because I've helped the people I'm around the most doesn't mean I won't help others. I just want to reduce the conflict by as much as possible."

She pointed over her shoulder. "My ship is that way," she said. "I can't open the Phantom Zone, so, as of right now, it's just you and me."

He followed her as she flew off. "So, what's your plan?" he asked. "I'm going to take a risk and trust you. So, what are you planning to do?"

"I'm looking for a way to selectively open the Phantom Zone," she said. "Not everyone who was sent there was a criminal. Near the end, your uncle Jor-El had a plan to save as many as possible. A large section of several cities were saved. We need to communicate with those in the Zone and discover which ones deserve to be released."

Armin had a bad feeling. What, though, would he do? Would he attack the only person from his home planet he'd seen? Were there others waiting to attack him? One thing was for sure, he wasn't going to go along with any plan until he knew everything he could possibly know. No one was going to get him to do anything until he had assurances that no huge disaster would come to the people of Earth. He'd grown up among them. Some of them were family to him. If he found himself torn between them, he felt he would choose Earth.

Faora couldn't help but smile to herself; this child struck her as hopelessly naïve. Even right now, he probably kept telling himself that, should there be a trap, he wouldn't fall for it. Quite the contrary, he'd already fallen for the first part of it merely by agreeing to follow her to the ship. Zod had more tricks up his sleeve than merely escaping the Zone. He had plans for this world. She had accompanied her General loyally through the worst of the civil war, and with the decrepit lineages destroyed by the death of their planet, she would see his vision through to the end.

The ocean passed by beneath them at incredible speeds, and Armin thought of the amazing circumstances that lay before him and behind him. His planet had died, his people scattered to the reaches of space, and now, a survivor came to him. Even still, politics were involved. The alarms in his head were going off a dozen at a time. So many things seemed wrong. Still, he counted on his wits to keep him ahead of any traps. He didn't trust her. His curiosity, more than anything, propelled him forward.

After about five minutes, they arrived at the site. Faora had moved her ship from where she landed. They stood in a wooded area far away from any nearby cities. Outside the ship stood a large metallic device. It resembled a cannon attached to a pair of crystalline legs. Armin recognized it from his father's lessons. "Is that the Phantom Zone projector?" he asked.

Faora nodded. "Yes," she explained. "And I'm not asking you to do anything. I just wanted to show you."

"So, what's the plan now?" Armin asked.

"We have to discuss that," she said. "Obviously, there's no reason for you to trust me. So, I'm letting you keep in control of the situation."

Armin folded his arms. "So, we're at an impasse." He resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. "Give me something more than that."

"I can give you your cousin, Kal-El," Faora said.

Armin froze. Words failed him. His stance faltered. Finally, he was able to say, "You're lying. Kal-El is in space, his ship hasn't landed yet."

Faora shook her head. "No, that's not accurate," she said. "His ship never made it off Krypton. We pulled him into the Phantom Zone shortly after the planet's destruction."

Armin cocked his head in confusion. "What do you mean," he asked for clarification, "you 'pulled him into' the Phantom Zone?"

"What I mean," Faora explained, "is that Jor-El built a backup safety mechanism into the Projector inside the zone and outside."

Just then, the projector fired a beam, which opened a window into the zone. An imposing figure, familiar from Zor-El's lessons, strode up to the window, clutching a young man in his arm. Armin recognized him instantly.

"Zod!" Armin shouted.

The general pushed the young man forward. "Go see your cousin, Kal," he told the young man.

Armin moved forward. "How…?"

Kal-El opened his mouth, presumably to yell, "Stay back!" Before he could, however, the projector fired a second beam, and the window opened to several feet in diameter and became a portal. The light temporarily caught Armin off guard. The general moved forward, along with his young unwilling assistant. He took in the bright yellow sun's radiance, empowering his cells.

"The trap sprung the instant you decided to follow me," Faora said, grabbing both Armin's arms and holding him in place.

Zod propelled forward and slammed a fist into his target's gut.

The pain shot through Armin like a bullet. The last time he felt anything resembling this had been when his powers were new, and a titan tried to bite him in half. Zod then delivered a right hook to the cheek that jarred his senses and sent searing pain through his head. A ringing sounded through his ear. Before Armin could react, the general clutched his head in both hands and yanked it down into a rising knee strike.

Before Zod could strike again, Kal-El grabbed the fist and pulled the would-be assailant into a torso kick that launched him into the air. He fired a burst of heat vision that caught Faora in her surprised eyes and pulled Armin free.

"But how…?" Armin began.

"Not now!" Kal-El said, pulling himself into a boxing stance.

Armin heeded his cousin's advice and faced the General, who righted himself midair. "Don't punch, strike!" His cousin told him. Before he had a chance to ask, Zod flew in at incredible speed, almost catching him by surprise. He managed to parry the straight right hand, pushing it aside and delivering a sternum punch. The General gave a huff, and brushed it off, moving forward into an elbow strike. The force drove the wind out of him.

"Strike!" Kal-El repeated.

Armin saw what his cousin was doing. Kal-El would parry and strike with the tips of his fingers, his hand held like a blade, or with his elbow. He understood immediately, dodging a blow from Zod not very efficiently. Zod caught him on the side of the arm, launching him into the dirt.

Armin barely had time to right himself as his foe shot like a cannonball at him. He saw the fists aimed at him and he ducked beneath them, flattening his hands and firing them forward at Zod like a spear. The impact in the upper chest brought a loud gasp from the General and he attempted an attack. He mimicked his younger foe's attack and attempted to strike with fingertips, but Armin saw it coming, courtesy of Zor-El's training, and struck the arm at the elbow, drawing a yelp of pain and a curse. Zod swung for the head and Armin ducked to the right, which was a mistake as it put him directly in the path of a rising knee to the right abdomen.

Not wasting a moment, the General fired a rapid series of strikes that brought a cry of agony from Armin as his entire torso lit up with pain, and a small spurt of blood from his mouth. Armin might have had training, he realized, but this General Zod was a master fighter. Before he could turn the tables again, he found himself on the receiving end of a critical series of blows.

Kal-El threw Faora off him and attempted to join his cousin on attacking Zod, but the general predicted the attack and whirled aside. The two cousins stood side to side against the two warriors. Armin felt a little guilty as he shelved his own frustration. He hadn't been involved in a real fight—one involving actual effort—in years. When he had his power for the first time, he had to struggle only in terms of hiding his power from the masses. Now, against actual Kryptonians, and skilled combatants, no less, he found his efforts coming up short. The enemy took damage as well as he did, and his fighting skill came up hilariously low. Maybe if he could fight as well as Levi, something good would happen.

Zod would not be denied, and Faora earned her keep as his second-in-command. Kal-El and Armin struggled with all their might, but the two trained fighters would not falter. "Kar," Kal-El said to Armin, "I'm sorry. This couldn't have happened without me…"

Before Armin could even protest, he found himself pummeled with a flurry of blows that staggered him. Zod looked over at Faora, and she dashed away from the fight. "Now!" Armin shouted, and the two cousins double teamed Zod as fast as they could. They managed to catch the general off guard.

"You're too late!" Zod shouted, dodging upwards. Before either cousin could react, they were unmade. Armin felt his senses fail him as his vision distorted away into nothing. A million tiny pinpricks all over his body travelled from his toes to his head and within an instant, all sensation vanished. He tried to scream but could not. His body had travelled somewhere away from feeling.

"Kar?"

Light returned to his eyes slowly. Armin shook himself awake and sat up. His short-haired cousin held both his shoulders. "Kar, are you ok?"

"What the hell…?" Armin said, clamoring to his feet. His breath labored into and out of his lungs. Every part of him felt heavy and aching. This sensation of physical tiredness hadn't been a part of his experience since childhood. "Where are we? Is this the…"

Kal-El nodded. "This is the Phantom Zone."

Armin shook his head again, looking around. They were in a rocky area with desolate, grayish hills and mountains all around. The sky had no discernable color other than shades of gray. There was light, albeit from seemingly nowhere and everywhere at once. Only after taking a few steps did he realize just how much sensation he did _not_ feel when he had power. His legs burned with each step. He felt as though he'd walked the distance of the Earth itself. Thoughts a mile a minute weighed on his mind. "Kal, how is this possible? I thought we were both infants when we were sent away?" Agony caught him as he pictured the terror the two of them would cause. "We've got to find a way back to stop them!"

Kal-El motioned in a specific direction. "Walk and I'll explain," he began.

Armin nodded, and the two of them began travelling over the unforgiving terrain. It occurred to him that his cousin wore a traditional Kryptonian bodysuit, fashioned out of incredible fibers, and he himself wore the leather and hide outfit of the Scout Regiment. His cousin's futuristic boots probably would handle the terrain more than Armin's own worn leather hiking boots.

"Zod and his crew are criminals, as you likely knew," Kal continued. "The Zone containment failed a few months after Krypton exploded. They were able to briefly interact with the real universe because a section of the Zone became physically tied to the real universe. That's how they captured my ship."

Armin gave his cousin a once-over. "But, you've aged in the zone!"

"Again," Kal-El explained, "since part of the Zone bleeds into the physical reality, they used the Zone Projector to have me exit the zone at specific locations to gather supplies from former Kryptonian outposts and some of our fellow people who were in stasis on other planets during the olden days of the exploration of space."

"But if you could exit the zone, why would you go back in?"

Kal-El's expression hardened. "In years of exploration," he said, dour, "we never found another inhabitable planet. Also, I wanted to see you. I wanted to see something other than the Zone and the criminals inside."

"Are we going to have to fight them?" Armin said. "There's only the two of us, and if nobody has powers here, we're doomed."

"That's why we're going _this_ way," Kal assured. "There's multiple places in the Zone where people have set up camp. There's friendly places far away from where the Ruling Council dumped its trash."

Armin stopped for a moment. "Wait, I remember something," he said. "Faora said there is a projector inside the zone. That's our ticket back to Earth!"

"We're not going back to Earth _first_ ," Kal-El said. "There was no fighting them. They were two of Krypton's best soldiers."

"So where the hell are we going?"

"To get reinforcements."

Armin did a double take. "Reinforcements?" He almost shouted.

They climbed up a rocky hill and sat on a few smooth rocks to get their bearings and to relax a moment. "You see," Kal explained, "When most of the colonies were abandoned when Krypton cancelled their space exploration program, the people who could not have escaped in time were put in stasis, and their pods had enough energy for twenty years."

"Makes sense," Armin agreed. He paused a moment to think. "Wait, how do we know they're on our side?"

"Most of them are from the Exploration Guild, which is sternly non-military," Kal assured. "And besides, I spoke to some of their most important members."

Armin coughed and his breathing slowed down, making him somewhat relaxed. Still, he felt more tired than he had been in literal years. "You may not want to hear this," he said, rubbing his eyes, "but how much farther do we have to walk?"

"It's a day's journey that way," Kal-El said, pointing. "See that light over there? That's a camp I stay at most of the time. They haven't had to fight criminals in years."

"A day's journey?" Armin asked. "But we don't have food or water!"

"We're not in the truly physical part of the Zone yet." He wiped his brow and produced a dry hand. "See? You're not really sweating. You can't die in this part of the Zone. Most people live in the partially physical parts of the zone because they want to grow old and die, and eventually leave the zone."

"But," Armin argued, "couldn't you let them out?"

"En masse? No. Not without you."

Armin tilted his head a bit in confusion. "What?"

"A single member of the House of El can enter and leave the Zone at specific points, but in order to open a full-fledged portal, there has to be at least two."

"There's no other way?"

Kal shook his head. "Not without the projector that Faora and Zod have."

A horrifying thought caught Armin. He almost jerked upwards. "Oh shit! Zod's going to let the criminals out!"

Kal shook his head. "That's not going to happen," he said.

Armin looked at him, blinking. "I'm sorry, but how?"

Kal looked up. "Most of them can't be let out except by us."

"So," Armin said, realizing, "that means they're going to come for us!"

Kal stood up. "Which is why we're going to beat them to our destination."

They started walking again, this time moving at a faster pace. After climbing down the hill, the rocks flattened out into a smoother path, indicating this route had been frequently travelled. Despite aching feet, they began jogging since the smaller, smoother rocks crunched more easily under their feet. Hours passed as the two moved on, ignoring the fire burning in their legs. After six hours, the two had to stop again to relax.

Kal-El leaned back on a large rock. "So, Kar," he asked, "what have you been up to on Earth?"

Armin let out a whistle. "Where do I even _begin_ ," he asked no one.

"Just take it from the top."

"Ha. Alright," Armin said, letting out a chuckle. "My powers didn't manifest for a while. The island I grew up on was inhabited by giant human-like beings called Titans, and the cities of normal humans were surrounded by giant walls to keep them out."

Kal-El sat up. "That sounds…pretty terrible," he said.

"It's kind of ironic," Armin countered. "I developed my powers, and within a few years, we'd exterminated all the monsters. After more than a century of living in constant fear, and with my help, they're almost a non-issue right now."

"I'm sure the people you saved aren't complaining," Kal-El argued.

Armin shrugged. "It won't matter if we don't stop Zod."

As they got up to travel again, Kal-El replied, "He's arrogant. He won't kill everyone because he wants people to lord over."

"I'm just pissed at how easy it was for him to beat me."

"We'll take care of it together," Kal-El said. "You weren't prepared, but we'll be."

Armin didn't know how comfortable he felt about the whole idea. What was Zod planning? Surely with having had years to plan the whole ordeal, things wouldn't go smoothly. He didn't know what to expect, but he felt that they were walking into a trap. A few more hours passed, and with utter agony in their bodies from the journey, they made it to a makeshift city. Somehow, those trapped there had fashioned the crystal and rock into shelters and buildings of various arrangement. The gray rock and the formless sky had changed color. The sky showed various scenes from distant galaxies. The star map constantly changed overhead.

"Good god," Armin said. "What is this pain? My legs hurt before, but now…"

"This is the part of the Zone that's physical," Kal-El explained. "The closer we get to the inner projector, the more your body becomes tangible."

"In other words," Armin clarified, "the pain isn't just the 'essence' of pain, it's actual pain." His cousin nodded. "Fantastic."

"Hopefully we can rest a bit before we go," Kal-El said. "I mean, the people here are nicer…" Something struck him as odd.

Armin looked up and saw a gleam of light from one of the buildings up ahead. "What the hell…?" Something about it seemed familiar. His eyes went wide. "Oh, SHIT!" He draped an arm around his cousin and hit the deck. The stones were smoother but still hurt his knees.

Not a few moments after he ducked, a shot rang out and a small stone behind their heads exploded into gravel. The two cousins crouch-walked away in separate directions. Signaling to each other, they formulated a hack job of a plan.

"God dammit," A voice shouted, moving from one rooftop post to another and reloading.

Armin ducked behind a rock a few seconds after a crack and a pop of chunks of stone flying off sounded behind him. He leapt from his hideout to a straight run towards the building the shooter occupied. He quickly moved behind a large crystal as he saw the shooter ready another shot.

Kal-El had gotten closer to the building than Armin, and he had a plan to get at least one of them on the roof to tangle with the shooter. Armin saw what he had in mind and made a run for another outcropping. Since the shooter was one man with one gun, he prioritized the closer man first. Armin used this initiative to close the gap. When his cousin ducked below the shot, the two of them closed in on a large rock formation near the base of the building.

"Now!" Armin shouted as he gave his cousin a boost. With a bound, the young man grabbed onto the ledge and yanked himself up. The shooter dashed over and attempted an assault. Kal-El took a few heavy blows, but eventually got his bearings and fought back. Armin climbed up the side by means of jagged rocks sticking out. He landed the last blow that knocked the shooter off his feet.

Armin drew the gun off the ground and at the downed assailant. "Talk!" He learned from Levi that less was sometimes more. Kal-El sat on the ledge next to his cousin.

The thing wasn't human, but even so, both Kryptonians could make out the look of fear on the thing's face. "It doesn't matter now," he said. "Now that you two are here, they can get out!"

"Who…?" Armin didn't have to finish the sentence. Footsteps sounded outside the building. Both looked over the edge. At least thirteen figures stood firm, some with knives fashioned out of rock.

"Come down, House of El!" A man with pale skin and ear-length brown hair said.

Armin saw they wore the ebony bodysuits of the military guild. These were loyal servants of Zod. "Dammit," he swore. "They beat us here."

"I should've seen this coming," Kal-El replied.

"What do we do?" Armin asked.

The man clapped his hands once for effect. "House of El!" he repeated. "Even if you kill one of us, we'll be up there in a moment! The only way you live is with us!"

Kal-El winked at his cousin, and that didn't help at all. Armin threw the gun aside and they reluctantly climbed down. On the bottom, the men quickly surrounded and grabbed them, holding their arms behind their backs. "Oof!" Armin exclaimed, angry at being shoved around. "You aren't getting out without both of us, so why be so fucking aggressive?"

"Insurance," the man said.

"Who the fuck are you?" Armin asked.

"Name's Fer-Gor," the man said. "Commander Gor to you, loyal servant of General Zod."

"You're still an asshole," Kal-El added.

"The General has been looking for a new planet for Krypton to live on," Gor said. "Earth is just right. Especially considering it has a yellow sun. Our new empire will not be challenged."

Another Kryptonian added, "You're going to take us there."

"Fuck you," Armin said.

"Ah, but I'm sure you want to see your friends again," Gor replied. "I'm certain if you comply, Zod will let the ones you love most live."

The projector was a short walk from the makeshift village. A large, crystal platform had been fashioned carefully and on it stood a large console with an emblem on the center with the symbol of the House of El inside.

The men stood on the platform and pushed the two to the center. "I've put the coordinates in," Gor said. "Just activate the machine."

"No funny business!" One of the Kryptonians shouted. "We're watching you!"

Armin followed Kal-El to the projector. "Here?" He placed his hand on the symbol.

"Here," Kal-El agreed. He placed his hand over Armin's, and a warm energy overtook them. A glow emerged from the center of the floor and expanded in a circle outward, engulfing them all. "Hands up right away, ok?"

"What?" Armin tried to say, right before his entire body disassembled.

Fire passed through every nerve in his body right before his senses went dark. He felt every part of himself disappear, one piece at a time. Sensation returned a good second later, and he could hardly wait to take in a breath. His lungs burned, and then ached, as fresh air zoomed in. Before his head had a chance to stop spinning, he remembered what his cousin told him and his hands shot up.

"Freeze! Who goes there!" A voice cried out.

Zod's soldiers appeared. "This isn't Earth, what the hell!" a voice shouted behind them.

Armin hit his knees and looked ahead. Kryptonians with various symbols on their bodysuits held laser rifles at shoulder height and trained on the group. Kal-El did not dare shift his gaze away from the group ahead.

"Captain," the male Kryptonian, with sand-colored hair and a thin-but-toned build, said. "Looks like we've got Phantom Zone criminals."

"They're wearing the symbol of the House of Zod," A dark-skinned female Kryptonian said. "Except these two."

The Phantom Zone criminals attempted to fight back. Amidst cries to stop, there was the occasional rifle blast, which felled a prisoner. The group passed by the two El's, and engaged in fisticuffs with the soldiers, also using improvised weaponry. An alarm sounded and from up a hill, out of several buildings, more men followed.

With his head held down, Armin noticed the situation. They were on a planet with a red sun and flora like what he saw in his learning crystals. He ran his hand through the lavender and light blue grass-like plant covering the ground. The air hurt to breathe at first and his nose ran a bit. Wherever they were, it had been krypto-formed. A tear made its way to his eye, as he realized he was feeling the ground and breathing the air of his once home planet for the first, and possibly last time. The sounds of screams and blaster fire went on for a few more minutes, before the silence of the wind returned to prominence.

Footsteps approached. "Alright, the rest of your men are subdued," a female voice said. "Stand up. There's plenty of guns trained on you, so no funny…" Armin and Kal-El stood up and their faces met with the woman's. It was a woman with long blonde hair and a pair of deep blue eyes.

Armin took a moment for it to register. When he did, his jaw almost dropped. Kal-El went teary eyed. "Kara?"

Kara Zor-El had to swallow a moment. "Kal-El," she said to her short-haired cousin. "Is this…who I think it is?"

"This is your brother, Kar-El," Kal-El clarified.

"Brother!" Kara shouted, embracing him tight. Her tears soaked into his uniform. He held her, his arms feeling something he hadn't expected to feel. His family, what was left, had been united for the first time. Brother, sister, and cousin stood shoulder to shoulder and would meet the oncoming challenges together.

"I'm so…" The words escaped Armin for a few moments. "I can't believe…"

"What's going on?" Kara said.

"Zod and Faora are on Earth and opened the Phantom Zone," Kal-El explained. "Trapped us inside. It's likely he's already released a bunch of criminals."

Armin kissed his sister on the cheek. "We can have a reunion later," he said. "Right now, we have to plan."

Kal-El looked around. "There's about twenty here," he explained. "That means there's about fifteen more that could have escaped to Earth."

"What's worse," Armin added, "is Earth's yellow sun. They'll all have powers. Have you ever trained under a yellow sun?"

"I have," Kara said. "Looks like we're going to need the full security detail."

"Captain," the male Kryptonian said, approaching Kara. "What's the story?"

Kara realized she'd ignored her men. "Alright, yes, I forgot," she said. "Lor-Nam, these are my family. We must rescue Earth, it's under attack. Gather the security forces and we will defeat Zod and his men."

"I'm sure the General will approve of this, but, shouldn't we bring this up before the full council," Lor-Nam asked. "I mean, it seems like this is a zoner issue…" He saw Armin staring at him. "What?"

Armin broke from his staring stupor. "Oh!" he exclaimed. "I'm sorry. It's just that you look a lot like someone I know on Earth."

"A human bearing a resemblance to me? Odd." Despite Lor-Nam's doubts, he looked like someone had taken a younger Levi Ackerman and dyed his hair light brown.

"I think enough talk has been done," Kara said. "We bring this before the full council and then we open a portal to Earth."

Armin nodded, clenching his fists. "Yeah, we fight together."


End file.
